They wade ashore.
The tidesway hwelmd theim   landward.
Wode thei wetlich   thurgh watter
& laglie thurgh the layrie   logh
till even. Eachwhere   empaled.
Famig the flotmen   to the faroth came,
nor did thei drenk   yn the deop daerk.
Evening.
Drylanden, dweld yn   dazines
anon the nyght skyne   nighd
& the thester dyd   thynnifie.
Ethem theim endarkd   & enmuffled
& wynd weatherbeat   the waynway.
They are lost
Ferken thei furth   afote.
Yn a bloachen bewildernes   bewounderd,
thei scrithd sandeyen   thurgh sniddle
& the westie ways   dyd wasten.
in a wood.
Deop dycks   & deorc there weor,
of hore okes ful huge   a hundread togather,
the hasel & hagthorn   harled
with many brids unblyth   uppon boghes.
Of the dusk animals
Beastlyngs beflew   the blore. The mone
scharpnew schraped   the Schepherds Lamp
& in the applefallow fusk   craws floggeted.
and the night birds they hear
Twas twatterlight,   brids twyttled:
coventrees creachd   theyr crownets.
The thoughtswift thystlewarps   thrang,
& yerrd the yearnful   yarhwelps.
making unearthly noise
Cloakativelie the carkful   clotbird
awkd ahwiles,   fuskish & athwarten.
The hathful humbird   husted,
& rokes dyd ruse   riotlie.
Rattelmice hagrode   the reedswamp,
& wolvie worricows   hwufft.
with other creatures.
Mithen yn the marisch   gogmires,
wolfens wawed   yn wergs,
brocks berkd   & brustled,
haggyngs harraged   from theyr hidels,
& slipskyn swartlyngs   from slifters lift.
They are inspired with fear
Syns schapen was my schirt   (sayed Mooncow)
Ich nevir have cnowen   slike noyfulnes.
He gluskt at the grureful   grisyng,
the babellyke bawwaw   of beests
yn the rike of rhynociricall   Rothead.
and pray silently.
Utterlyke unwyrden   wyth ug, Mooncow
& ofcale Ofmach   dyd ofthynk
acwakelie & acompass   of aboven.
Deep night
Twas necromaneous night   & nonethyng
quynchd or quetcht   yn the quallmire.
Onelie a ferlich flapwyng   dyd forwend,
a spitemouse sprantled   yn startynghole,
& a spincop swogged   yts stabiliment.
they rest uneasily.
A clouden clammischnes   coronized theim
& wyndshook the wytherhoken   waschlocks.
Helld in a hidel   the heleths
draveld & dretchd   withouten dreem.
Dawn.
Thus yn darkhood the drightmen   dredden
till at ughten an underwynd   uprose
& budbyrds bewoke   yn beardtrees,
the donkand dew   draped of the leves,
& fenfyres   flut.
Rothead appears.
Thei heared a huscht   hove thurgh
the grimful gryndle   als Rothead grobbed.
Cloakativ it crep,   & cancryne,
hwuffyng lyke a hweyblooden   hwimlyng
lyke a wylfen, a wilder   or an aelwiht,
a gigant, a gorge,   a hellgast.
They see it breathe.
Behield thei yts beasten   blead.
Yts swoty snuffers   sweald
as yt snufted & smeld   & smired.
Yt gnasted gogmagogytall   golls
& toclatterd yts twaytoothen   tutel.
Thurgh treen yt twound   & twysted
as gramelie the gagril   toweard theim glod.
It sees them.
Allatonce agrose   the astonyng wyrm.
Sighlentlie yt slithed   & swole.
Smothlie & sluglie   closser yt siled.
Yts pizzel paggled   pulpilie als
serpentlich yt slipperd   screwways
& cwark, cwark   yt uglie quod.
It advances upon them.
Hard & hask   als hundfisch
wyth writhlich wrizzlen   wrats
& foul flesch yn   foreteeth
yt clove asundir clowds   of cley
& yts horie loom heng   hyndlong.
Mooncow flees.
Yn a swime to sen   the spitpoyson
Mooncow bived & blutherd   bawways.
Cowherdlie he cwekt   & crang
then arghlie awaped   arselyng
elsehwither, hys eddres   embladderd.
Of Ofmach's armour.
Uplie Ofmach unyarked   hys umbrere,
hys chaul & hys chyn wyth   chayns bond.
Bedight he was wyth breastlet   & badelar.
The glisch on hys graith   dyd gloze
& truelie to tel   he trimbeld for dred.
He unsheathes his sword
Hondled he hardlie   hys helve
& husked the hornen   handel.
Begirden wyth a barben   bistourie
impen wyth herd yren & harnischt   hys
cnife he cnotcht   yn cnightweed.
and fights Rothead.
Then firocytated the funestall   foemates.
Fidelyous Ofmach fierced   firest:
hys gomegraith   glentyng
he foind hys fist wyth   the sweord forn
but the wyver waived   & wered
& uplie areard yts atteren   anleth.
Rothead rounds on him.
Forweard & fleschward   yt flabbed,
& guilouslie at hym gliddid   a glimbel.
Slithe twas & slither,   scurft
& slidder, scearp yts fangs   & snoflig.
Blatlie yt bealcht from   bone-coffer
& wyth yts folms ufeward   yt feng.
Rothead strikes.
Outerlie yt outslipt   yts ougle
ongles & orpedlie   hym ofstung,
clapperclawd hym   coflie.
Nekst yts sawtooth sesours   yt snaught.
Wringlie yt wrathe   lich a wrayth.
Ofmach is wounded.
Yts seres scrabbed   a strawsbreadth
& thereright thwited   & thurghstung hym,
deepward dugged   yts dents
& bawways beflummed   the battlewright.
Rawhead pursues its attack.
The duggie demonarch   dervd hym thus:
hys schudderful schode   yt schraped,
gnasted yts gallwet   gobbertooth
& thunderthomp   hys thunwang
then scrazed hys scawen   swire
& gramelie gayncoped   the gome.
He bleeds and falls.
Bloud burld from   hys bursten skyn.
Yngiddied wyth thys illstarren   ynrace
he doun feol fenken   yn the feeld,
utterlich unfere   & unharted.
Ofmach is pursued.
Acwakyng abackward Ofmach   abandonlie
attrennd acompass   & agenwent
thurgh thike   thethorns till
almid the allhearts   he acwaked
hopand help   mought hulster
& from the wytherweard   wythtake hym
that baiblie besought   hys blud.
Mooncow returns with the ship's harpoon
Bytimes Mooncow beturnd   bywards
hauland the harpyng spar   he
fetcht had from   the farcost.
I beleft yow had blunkt   to the boat.
Abackward let us agenturn,   Ofmach acweathed.
and harpoons Rothead.
The wrawful wrooter   wrawld
als the lithebie lattew   littend Mooncow
headlongd hys   heavie harpyng spar
hyltdeep yn yts hyde   heartsyde,
pierst yts paunchswollen   poke,
so gored he the gryselich   gristel.
Hydouslie yt hagged   & haterd,
wyth slyfters & slughters   umbesletterd.
Ofmach cuts the worm.
The mammeated mawmother   was marrowlich.
Skillwiselie, sicklew Ofmach   scruted
to spack hys scorpiounlich   scramasax.
The battlewight becast   hys batterdascher
& disbuckled hys dusttemperd   dealth
then thwited yts thornen   throplet,
steted & snesed yt   sevensithes.
Rothead is hurt
Wyth hys wellsteelen   wifle
Ofmach snithed the snayk   yts skulleton,
& thereright thrested   yts tharm
Yt hwewed & hwicked   & hyarmed
but unboweld he yts uggen   umbles,
& everylyke yts eddres   embursted,
from sweordwunds spiwed   swatfag lichor.
and slain.
Dulful drowked   the dragoun,
but thwickthwack,   thwickthwack
spickt he hys spatterdascher   yn slappynes,
& goreblud glidderd   on the ground.
Thus Ofmach dyd occide   the orc
& slone thei the snaic   swireforth.
Out of it comes forth a child.
Yn Rothead yts barm a baban   yt bare.
From wythynside yts scad   outsprung
umbeweaven & unwemd   from yts umbles
birthbearyng   a blubcheeken bab.
Lieflich Ofmach lutcht   & alofted hym,
for he akent hys aftirborn son,   awarpen.
Thys suckler is my sonkyn,   he sayed.
Liveborn, my lilihwyte   lyttlyng.
They find treasure
Forthbie thei founed   a findall
of ornen ormetes   & orbicles,
a goldhoard & gersum   of gagates
orichalcs & orball   oriels,
smaragds, stactes   & asures,
pentests, perdicles   & pantarbs.
By blysm of beatioun thei   weor blymd
nethemest yn the nixyous   neckland.
and throw Rothead into a mire.
Spargeted wyth smod   the sweordbrothirs
yn quemelich quavemire   quadid Rothead,
dyd headlong yn the hurlpool   the hoblyn.
They return
Limbroke, lungcrackt   & liverschot,
bidravelen, biclaggen   & brawnfallen
homewardlie the headlyngs   henced,
bringand Ofmach hys newbegot   bastson.
and are tended.
Wyth leachcraft & loblollie   a leafful doctour
mixt a milchie   mythridate
tend theim trothlie   wyth triacle
till wyth wortcunning   theyr wunds
the healend halowed   to holenes.
They give thanks.
So cheerlie yn cherrymerrie   churchacre
thei etirnified an edmod   evesong,
iaped & ioist   yn iolliment
sacrated serenissimous   syngyng bread
crood a convenabel   cantatioun,
& weor cumferd by carols   & caterbrawls.
Ofmach names his son.
Hys son he weshen wipen   & wond
yn clouts & from hys cist   a cynehelm
& the gylden gimmas   that gebyrged weor.
Yn hys calftime he tattled   & tytterd,
glisiand als goldwire   growd hys hayr.
Thei nevend & noynted hym   Nekmost
for he wold forther hys feader,   as foredestend.