One day, in the mists of time, a knight dressed in black approached a great castle. His trusty stead, blacky, was happily trotting along through the early morning sunshine. As the knight came to the castle, the sentries at the outer gate moved to block him. ‘Whoah there, good sir knight, who are you? And what business do you have here?’ they asked. ‘I am the Black knight, from the black lands, on my black stead, blacky, and I am here to see the king’, he replied, patting the horse gently on his neck.
‘Oh, right – then please go through’ and the sentries stood back and opened the gate to allow the knight passage. And so the knight moved on over the drawbridge, and came to the portcullis.
As the knight approached, the sentries at the outer gate moved to block him. ‘Whoah there, good sir knight, who are you? And what business do you have here?’ they asked. ‘I am the Black knight, from the black lands, on my black stead, blacky, and I am here to see the king’, he replied, and so the sentries back off and opened the gate allowing him passage.
The knight proceeds on through the castle grounds, nodding at peasants here and there as he passes, all the while approaching the main castle. As he comes to the main door, the sentries moved to block him. ‘Whoah there, good sir knight, who are you? And what business do you have here?’ they asked. ‘I am the Black knight, from the black lands, on my black stead, blacky, and I am here to see the king’, he replied, patting the horse gently on his neck again.
‘Very well, but you will have to dismount and disarm here, good sir knight.’ The black knight did so, and was allowed entrance. Going up some stairs, he came to the throne room where two sentries at the door moved to block him. ‘Whoah there, good sir knight, who are you? And what business do you have here?’ they asked. ‘I am the Black knight, from the black lands, and my black stead, rusty, is outside. I am here to see the king’, he replied. The sentries moved aside and waved him inside.
As the knight approached the king, some soldiers moved to block him. ‘Whoah there, good sir knight, who are you? And what business do you have here?’ they asked. ‘I am the Black knight, from the black lands, and I am here to see the king’, he replied. ‘Very well, they said, but you should shine your armour first.’ So they called for a paige who came and polished the knights armour until it gleamed. The knight approached the king.
‘Good sir knight, who are you and why are you here?’ asked the king. ‘Good Sire, I am the black knight of the black lands. And I come to seek a quest.’ The king mused for a while, and then said ‘Ah yes! I do have something for you. 100 miles north is a cave with a great red dragon. Slay this dragon for me and I shall give you untold riches!’ The knight bowed, and left.
Riding north on his trusty black stead, blacky, the black knight quickly reached the cavern. Dismounting and leaving blacky by a watering hole, the knight crept into the cavern. There, at the end of a vast space sat a huge red dragon on a horde of treasure. Noticing the knight, the dragon started. ‘WHO DARES DISTURB ME? THE RED DRAGON!’ The knight approached slowly, ‘I am the black knight, from the black lands. And I am here to slay you for the great king’. And so battle ensued. After a long and bloody fight, the dragon was defeated. The black knight took its severed head as proof and returned to the castle.
As he approached the outer gate, the sentries moved to block him, ‘Whoah there, good sir knight. Who are you and what is your business here?’ The knight looked surprised, but as he was covered in the blood of the red dragon realised he might not be recognisable. ‘I am the black knight, from the black lands, and this is my trusty stead, blacky. I bring the head of the red dragon and am covered in his blood’ The guards stared for a while, and then slowly realised. ‘Ah, we’re sorry good sir knight, we didn’t recognise you covered in blood. Please proceed’. And so the knight moved through.
As he approached the portcullis, the sentries moved to block him, ‘Whoah there, good sir knight. Who are you and what is your business here?’ The knight looked surprised, but as he was covered in the blood of the red dragon realised he might not be recognisable. ‘I am the black knight, from the black lands, and this is my trusty stead, blacky. I bring the head of the red dragon and am covered in his blood’ The guards stared for a while, and then slowly realised. ‘Ah, we’re sorry good sir knight, we didn’t recognise you covered in blood. Please proceed’. The portcullis was raised, and the knight moved through.
And so the knight moved on through the castle, past the peasants and peons, and eventually came to the castle. The sentries moved to block him, ‘Whoah there, good sir knight. Who are you and what is your business here?’ The knight looked surprised, but as he was covered in the blood of the red dragon realised he might not be recognisable. ‘I am the black knight, from the black lands, and this is my trusty stead, blacky. I bring the head of the red dragon and am covered in his blood’ The guards stared for a while, and then slowly realised. ‘Ah, we’re sorry good sir knight, we didn’t recognise you covered in blood. Please proceed’. And so the knight dismounted and entered the castle.
Approaching the throne room, the sentries moved to block him, ‘Whoah there, good sir knight. Who are you and what is your business here?’. ‘I am the black knight, from the black lands, and my trusty stead, blacky, is outside. I bring the head of the red dragon and am covered in his blood.’ The guards stared for a while, and then slowly realised. ‘Ah, we’re sorry good sir knight, we didn’t recognise you covered in blood. Please proceed’. And so the knight moved through.
As the knight moved towards the king, his personal soldiers moved to block the way. ‘Whoah there, good sir knight. Who are you and what is your business here?’ ‘I am the black knight, from the black lands, and I bring the head of the red dragon and am covered in his blood’ The guards stared for a while, and then slowly realised. ‘Ah, we’re sorry good sir knight, we didn’t recognise you covered in blood. You must have your armour shined before approaching the king!’ And so the paige was called for, and he cleaned and buffed the knights armour to a shine.
The knight finally approached the king, who bid him bow before him. ‘Sire, I bring to you the head of the red dragon’. The king clapped in glee, and then decreed that, as he promised, untold riches would be bestowed on the black knight. And everyone rejoiced. Before the black knight turned to leave though, the king coughed, ‘Good sir knight, wouldst thou be interested in a new quest? 100 Miles east, there is a blue dragon. Bring me his head, and you may marry my daughter, the princess royal!’ The knight looked across at the beautiful princess and bowed at the king. ‘I will return with the head of the blue dragon!’ and so he turned and left.
Riding east on his trusty black stead, blacky, the black knight quickly reached the cavern. Dismounting and leaving blacky by a watering hole, the knight crept into the cavern. There, at the end of a vast space sat a huge blue dragon on a horde of treasure. Noticing the knight, the dragon started. ‘WHO DARES DISTURB ME? THE BLUE DRAGON!’ The knight approached slowly, ‘I am the black knight, from the black lands. And I am here to slay you for the great king’. And so battle ensued. After a long and bloody fight, the dragon was defeated. The black knight took its severed head as proof and returned to the castle.
As he approached the outer gate, the sentries moved to block him, ‘Whoah there, good sir knight. Who are you and what is your business here?’ The knight looked surprised, but as he was covered in the blood of the blue dragon realised he might not be recognisable. ‘I am the black knight, from the black lands, and this is my trusty stead, blacky. I bring the head of the blue dragon and am covered in his blood’ The guards stared for a while, and then slowly realised. ‘Ah, we’re sorry good sir knight, we didn’t recognise you covered in blood. Please proceed’. And so the knight moved through.
As he approached the portcullis, the sentries moved to block him, ‘Whoah there, good sir knight. Who are you and what is your business here?’ The knight looked surprised, but as he was covered in the blood of the blue dragon realised he might not be recognisable. ‘I am the black knight, from the black lands, and this is my trusty stead, blacky. I bring the head of the blue dragon and am covered in his blood.’ The guards stared for a while, and then slowly realised. ‘Ah, we’re sorry good sir knight, we didn’t recognise you covered in blood. Please proceed’. The portcullis was raised, and the knight moved through.
And so the knight moved on through the castle, past the peasants and peons, and eventually came to the castle. The sentries moved to block him, ‘Whoah there, good sir knight. Who are you and what is your business here?’ The knight looked surprised, but as he was covered in the blood of the blue dragon realised he might not be recognisable. ‘I am the black knight, from the black lands, and this is my trusty stead, blacky. I bring the head of the blue dragon and am covered in his blood’ The guards stared for a while, and then slowly realised. ‘Ah, we’re sorry good sir knight, we didn’t recognise you covered in blood. Please proceed’. And so the knight dismounted and entered the castle.
Approaching the throne room, the sentries moved to block him, ‘Whoah there, good sir knight. Who are you and what is your business here?’. ‘I am the black knight, from the black lands, and my trusty stead, blacky, is outside. I bring the head of the blue dragon and am covered in his blood.’ The guards stared for a while, and then slowly realised. ‘Ah, we’re sorry good sir knight, we didn’t recognise you covered in blood. Please proceed’. And so the knight moved through.
As the knight moved towards the king, his personal soldiers moved to block the way. ‘Whoah there, good sir knight. Who are you and what is your business here?’ ‘I am the black knight, from the black lands, and I bring the head of the blue dragon and am covered in his blood’ The guards stared for a while, and then slowly realised. ‘Ah, we’re sorry good sir knight, we didn’t recognise you covered in blood. You must have your armour shined before approaching the king!’ And so the paige was called for, and he cleaned and buffed the knights armour to a shine.
The knight finally approached the king, who bid him bow before him. ‘Sire, I bring to you the head of the blue dragon’. The king clapped in glee, and then decreed that, as he promised, that his eldest daughter the princess royal was now betrothed to the black knight. And everyone rejoiced. Before the black knight turned to leave though, the king coughed, ‘Good sir knight, wouldst thou be interested in a new quest? 100 Miles south, there is a green dragon. Bring me his head, and I will give you a castle!’ The knight looked and bowed at the king. ‘I will return with the head of the green dragon!’ and so he turned and left.
Riding south on his trusty black stead, blacky, the black knight quickly reached the cavern. Dismounting and leaving blacky by a watering hole, the knight crept into the cavern. There, at the end of a vast space sat a huge green dragon on a horde of treasure. Noticing the knight, the dragon started. ‘WHO DARES DISTURB ME? THE GREEN DRAGON!’ The knight approached slowly, ‘I am the black knight, from the black lands. And I am here to slay you for the great king’. And so battle ensued. After a long and bloody fight, the dragon was defeated. The black knight took its severed head as proof and returned to the castle.
As he approached the outer gate, the sentries moved to block him, ‘Whoah there, good sir knight. Who are you and what is your business here?’ The knight looked surprised, but as he was covered in the blood of the green dragon realised he might not be recognisable. ‘I am the black knight, from the black lands, and this is my trusty stead, blacky. I bring the head of the green dragon and am covered in his blood’ The guards stared for a while, and then slowly realised. ‘Ah, we’re sorry good sir knight, we didn’t recognise you covered in blood. Please proceed’. And so the knight moved through.
As he approached the portcullis, the sentries moved to block him, ‘Whoah there, good sir knight. Who are you and what is your business here?’ The knight looked surprised, but as he was covered in the blood of the green dragon realised he might not be recognisable. ‘I am the black knight, from the black lands, and this is my trusty stead, blacky. I bring the head of the red dragon and am covered in his blood’ The guards stared for a while, and then slowly realised. ‘Ah, we’re sorry good sir knight, we didn’t recognise you covered in blood. Please proceed’. The portcullis was raised, and the knight moved through.
And so the knight moved on through the castle, past the peasants and peons, and eventually came to the castle. The sentries moved to block him, ‘Whoah there, good sir knight. Who are you and what is your business here?’ The knight looked surprised, but as he was covered in the blood of the green dragon realised he might not be recognisable. ‘I am the black knight, from the black lands, and this is my trusty stead, blacky. I bring the head of the red dragon and am covered in his blood’ The guards stared for a while, and then slowly realised. ‘Ah, we’re sorry good sir knight, we didn’t recognise you covered in blood. Please proceed’. And so the knight dismounted and entered the castle.
Approaching the throne room, the sentries moved to block him, ‘Whoah there, good sir knight. Who are you and what is your business here?’. ‘I am the black knight, from the black lands, and my trusty stead, blacky, is outside. I bring the head of the green dragon and am covered in his blood.’ The guards stared for a while, and then slowly realised. ‘Ah, we’re sorry good sir knight, we didn’t recognise you covered in blood. Please proceed’. And so the knight moved through.
As the knight moved towards the king, his personal soldiers moved to block the way. ‘Whoah there, good sir knight. Who are you and what is your business here?’ ‘I am the black knight, from the black lands, and I bring the head of the green dragon and am covered in his blood’ The guards stared for a while, and then slowly realised. ‘Ah, we’re sorry good sir knight, we didn’t recognise you covered in blood. You must have your armour shined before approaching the king!’ And so the paige was called for, and he cleaned and buffed the knights armour to a shine.
The knight finally approached the king, who bid him bow before him. ‘Sire, I bring to you the head of the green dragon’. The king clapped in glee, and then decreed that, as he promised, a castle would be given to the black knight. And everyone rejoiced. Before the black knight turned to leave though, the king coughed, ‘Good sir knight, wouldst thou be interested in a new quest? 100 Miles west, there is a golden dragon. Bring me his head, and you may have anything you wish for!’ The knight looked and bowed at the king. ‘I will return with the head of the golden dragon!’ and so he turned and left.
Riding west on his trusty black stead, blacky, the black knight quickly reached the cavern. Dismounting and leaving blacky by a watering hole, the knight crept into the cavern. There, at the end of a vast space sat a huge golden dragon on a horde of treasure. Noticing the knight, the dragon started. ‘WHO DARES DISTURB ME? THE GOLDEN DRAGON!’ The knight approached slowly, ‘I am the black knight, from the black lands. And I am here to slay you for the great king’. And so battle ensued. After a long and bloody fight, the dragon was defeated. The black knight took its severed head as proof and returned to the castle.
As he approached the outer gate, the sentries moved to block him, ‘Whoah there, good sir knight. Who are you and what is your business here?’ The knight looked surprised, but as he was covered in the blood of the golden dragon realised he might not be recognisable. ‘I am the black knight, from the black lands, and this is my trusty stead, blacky. I bring the head of the golden dragon and am covered in his blood’ The guards stared for a while, and then slowly realised. ‘Ah, we’re sorry good sir knight, we didn’t recognise you covered in blood. Please proceed’. And so the knight moved through.
As he approached the portcullis, the sentries moved to block him, ‘Whoah there, good sir knight. Who are you and what is your business here?’ The knight looked surprised, but as he was covered in the blood of the golden dragon realised he might not be recognisable. ‘I am the black knight, from the black lands, and this is my trusty stead, blacky. I bring the head of the golden dragon and am covered in his blood’ The guards stared for a while, and then slowly realised. ‘Ah, we’re sorry good sir knight, we didn’t recognise you covered in blood. Please proceed’. The portcullis was raised, and the knight moved through.
And so the knight moved on through the castle, past the peasants and peons, and eventually came to the castle. The sentries moved to block him, ‘Whoah there, good sir knight. Who are you and what is your business here?’ The knight looked surprised, but as he was covered in the blood of the golden dragon realised he might not be recognisable. ‘I am the black knight, from the black lands, and this is my trusty stead, blacky. I bring the head of the golden dragon and am covered in his blood’ The guards stared for a while, and then slowly realised. ‘Ah, we’re sorry good sir knight, we didn’t recognise you covered in blood. Please proceed’. And so the knight dismounted and entered the castle.
Approaching the throne room, the sentries moved to block him, ‘Whoah there, good sir knight. Who are you and what is your business here?’. ‘I am the black knight, from the black lands, and my trusty stead, blacky, is outside. I bring the head of the golden dragon and am covered in his blood.’ The guards stared for a while, and then slowly realised. ‘Ah, we’re sorry good sir knight, we didn’t recognise you covered in blood. Please proceed’. And so the knight moved through.
As the knight moved towards the king, his personal soldiers moved to block the way. ‘Oh no’ said one..
……’not that bloody knight again!’
