The Book of Three

'As I have explained to you before,' Dallben went on, '?and you have very likely forgotten? Prydain is a land of many cantrevs? of small kingdoms ?and many kings. And, of course, their war leaders who command the warriors.'

'But there is the High King above them all,' said Taran, 'Math Son of Mathonwy. His war leader is the mightiest hero in Prydain. You told me of him. Prince Gwydion! Yes,' Taran went on eagerly, 'I know…'

'There are other things you do not know,' Dallben said, 'for the obvious reason that I have not told you. For the moment I am less concerned with the realms of the living than with the Land of the Dead, with Annuvin.'

Taran shuddered at the word. Even Dallben had spoken it in a whisper.

'And with King Arawn, Lord of Annuvin,' Dallben said. 'Know this,' he continued quickly, 'Annuvin is more than a land of death. It is a treasure house, not only of gold and jewels but of all things of advantage to men. Long ago, the race of men owned these treasures. By craft and deceit, Arawn stole them, one by one, for his own evil uses. Some few of the treasures have been wrested from him, though most lie hidden deep in Annuvin, where Arawn guards them jealously.'

'But Arawn did not become ruler of Prydain,' Taran said.

'You may be thankful he did not,' said Dallben. 'He would have ruled had it not been for the Children of Don, the sons of the Lady Don and her consort Belin, King of the Sun. Long ago they voyaged to Prydain from the Summer Country and found the land rich and fair, though the race of men had little for themselves. The Sons of Don built their stronghold at Caer Dathyl, far north in the Eagle Mountains. From there, they helped regain at least a portion of what Arawn had stolen, and stood as guardians against the lurking threat of Annuvin.'

'I hate to think what would have happened if the Sons of Don hadn't come,' Taran said. 'It was a good destiny that brought them.'

'I am not always sure,' said Dallben, with a wry smile. 'The men of Prydain came to rely on the strength of the House of Don as a child clings to its mother. They do so even today. Math, the High King, is descended from the House of Don. So is Prince Gwydion. But that is all by the way. Prydain has been at peace? as much as men can be peaceful? until now.

'What you do not know,' Dallben said, 'is this: it has reached my ears that a new and mighty warlord has risen, as powerful as Gwydion; some say more powerful. But he is a man of evil for whom death is a black joy. He sports with death as you might sport with a dog.'

'Who is he?' cried Taran.

Dallben shook his head. 'No man knows his name, nor has any man seen his face. He wears an antlered mask, and for this reason he is called the Horned King. His purposes I do not know. I suspect the hand of Arawn, but in what manner I cannot tell. I tell you now for your own protection,' Dallben added. 'From what I saw this morning, your head is full of nonsense about feats of arms. Whatever notions you may have, I advise you to forget them immediately. There is unknown danger abroad. You are barely on the threshold of manhood, and I have a certain responsibility to see that you reach it, preferably with a whole skin. So, you are not to leave Caer Dallben under any circumstances, not even past the orchard, and certainly not into the forest? not for the time being.'

'For the time being!' Taran burst out. 'I think it will always be for the time being, and it will be vegetables and horseshoes all my life!'

'Tut,' said Dallben, 'there are worse things. Do you set yourself to be a glorious hero? Do you believe it is all flashing swords and galloping about on horses? As for being glorious…'

'What of Prince Gwydion?' cried Taran. 'Yes! I wish I might be like him!'

'I fear,' Dallben said, 'that is entirely out of the question.'

'But why?' Taran sprang to his feet. 'I know if I had the chance…'

'Why?' Dallben interrupted. 'In some cases,' he said, 'we learn more by looking for the answer to a question and not finding it than we do from learning the answer itself. This is one of those cases. I could tell you why, but at the moment it would only be more confusing. If you grow up with any kind of sense? which you sometimes make me doubt? you will very likely reach your own conclusions.

'They will probably be wrong,' he added. 'However, since they will be yours, you will feel a little more satisfied with them.'

Taran sank back and sat, gloomy and silent, on the bench. Dallben had already begun meditating again. His chin gradually came to rest on his collarbone; his beard floated around his ears like a fog bank; and he began snoring peacefully.

The spring scent of apple blossom drifted through the open window. Beyond Dallben's chamber, Taran glimpsed the pale green fringe of forest. The fields, ready to cultivate, would soon turn golden with summer. The Book of Three lay closed on the table. Taran had never been allowed to read the volume for himself; now he was sure it held more than Dallben chose to tell him. In the sun-filled room, with Dallben still meditating and showing no sign of stopping, Taran rose and moved through the shimmering beams. From the forest came the monotonous tick of a beetle.

His hands reached for the cover. Taran gasped in pain and snatched them away. They smarted as if each of his fingers had been stung by hornets. He jumped back, stumbled against the bench, and dropped to the floor, where he put his fingers woefully into his mouth.

Dallben's eyes blinked open. He peered at Taran and yawned slowly. 'You had better see Coll about a lotion for those hands,' he advised. 'Otherwise, I shouldn't be surprised if they blistered.'

Fingers smarting, the shamefaced Taran hurried from the cottage and found Coll near the vegetable garden.

'You have been at The Book of Three,' Coll said. 'That is not hard to guess. Now you know better. Well, that is one of the three foundations of learning: see much, study much, suffer much.' He led Taran to the stable where medicines for the livestock were kept, and poured a concoction over Taran's fingers.

'What is the use of studying much when I'm to see nothing at all?' Taran retorted. 'I think there is a destiny laid on me that I am not to know anything interesting, go anywhere interesting, or do anything interesting. I'm certainly not to be anything. I'm not anything even at Caer Dallben!'

'Very well,' said Coll, 'if that is all that troubles you, I shall make you something. From this moment, you are Taran, Assistant Pig-Keeper. You shall help me take care of Hen Wen: see her trough is full, carry her water, and give her a good scrubbing every other day.'

'That's what I do now,' Taran said bitterly.

'All the better,' said Coll, 'for it makes things that much easier. If you want to be something with a name attached to it, I can't think of anything closer to hand. And it is not every lad who can be assistant keeper to an oracular pig. Indeed, she is the only oracular pig in Prydain, and the most valuable.'

'Valuable to Dallben,' Taran said. 'She never tells me anything.'

'Did you think she would?' replied Coll. 'With Hen Wen, you must know how to ask? here, what was that?' Coll shaded his eyes with his hand. A black, buzzing cloud streaked from the orchard, and bore on so rapidly and passed so close to Coll's head that he had to leap out of the way.

'The bees!' Taran shouted. 'They're swarming!'

'It is not their time,' cried Coll. 'There is something amiss.'

The cloud rose high toward the sun. An instant later Taran heard a loud clucking and squawking from the chicken run. He turned to see the five hens and the rooster beating their wings. Before it occurred to him they were attempting to fly, they, too, were aloft.

Taran and Coll raced to the chicken run, too late to catch the fowls. With the rooster leading, the chickens flapped awkwardly through the air and disappeared over the brow of a hill.

From the stable the pair of oxen bellowed and rolled their eyes in terror.

Dallben's head poked out of the window. He looked irritated. 'It has become absolutely impossible for any kind of meditation whatsoever,' he said, with a severe glance at Taran. 'I have warned you once…'

'Something frightened the animals,' Taran protested. 'First the bees, then the chickens flew off…'

Dallben's face turned grave. 'I have been given no knowledge of this,' he said to Coll. 'We must ask Hen Wen about it immediately, and we shall need the letter sticks. Quickly, help me find them.'

Coll moved hastily to the cottage door. 'Watch Hen Wen closely,' he ordered Taran. 'Do not let her out of your sight.'

Coll disappeared inside the cottage to search for Hen Wen's letter sticks, the long rods of ash wood carved with