CHARLEMAGNE: ASTOLPHO IN ETHIOPIA

These are the legends about Charlemagne and his Paladins, not the actual history, so there will be dragons, monsters and magic. FOR MY FIRST CHAPTER ON CHARLEMAGNE’S PALADINS CLICK HERE.

ASTOLPHO IN ETHIOPIA – When we left Charlemagne’s Paladin Astolpho, he had just vanquished the evil sorcerer Atlantes, then freed all of the captives in his invisible castle. Among those captives was the great Roland, the Emperor’s nephew and most accomplished warrior.

Bradamante, the female Paladin in white armor, had also been among Atlantes’ prisoners and Astolpho reunited her with her true love Ruggiero. The loving couple rode off to secure her father’s consent for them to be wed, and Roland rode off to link up with Charlemagne’s main body of troops.

Astolpho, with his horse Rabican being used by Bradamante and her man, had been lent the use of Ruggiero’s winged hippogriff. Like Roland, he wanted to reach the Emperor’s main army clashing with the Muslim invaders from colonized Spain and North Africa.

In his eagerness, Astolpho miscalculated how swiftly the flying hippogriff could travel and before our hero knew it, he and the creature were over Abyssinia (Ethiopia) in Africa. Astolpho decided to land and pay his respects to Abyssinia’s Christian King Senapus.

Astolpho was dazzled by the grandeur of Senapus’ court as that king threw a feast of welcome for the famous Paladin. During the festivities, our hero was impressed with King Senapus’ hospitality when he learned from courtiers that Senapus had been blinded by dark magic from a nearby nation he tried to add to his kingdom.

Even worse, that same realm’s sorcery had caused winged female monsters like the Furies from Greek mythology to plague Senapus and his people. Hoping to enlist Abyssinia as allies against the Muslim invaders of Charlemagne’s Empire, Astolpho decided to leave the next morning to end the Furies’ assaults on the kingdom.

Astride the hippogriff, the Paladin took to the skies and engaged the Furies in aerial combat. He slew many of the winged monsters and those he could not kill he drove off with a few sustained blasts of the enchanted horn given to him by his beloved Queen Logestilla a few installments ago.

Astolpho followed the fleeing Furies to a cave in which they sought refuge. He then landed and blocked the entrance with many boulders and trees to make sure they could never get out again.

Our hero then refreshed himself at a stream which flowed down from the top of a very high mountain which the Furies’ cavern penetrated. Astolpho felt something driving him to fly up to the summit to see what he might find. He mounted up and ascended.

Atop the mountain he landed on a vast plain on which stood a majestic palace which exceeded all Earthly structures. A wise old man in purple emerged from within and greeted Astolpho, telling him it was he who had influenced him to visit him.

The man introduced himself as Saint John, sent by God to this mountaintop in order to inform Astolpho of various evils which had befallen Roland and other Paladins over the past few days. Awestruck to be conversing with one of the Apostles, Astolpho accompanied St. John inside to be shown the dangers confronting Roland and the others. 

*** I’ll be examining more tales of Charlemagne soon, picking up from this one. FOR LINKS TO THE PREVIOUS CHARLEMAGNE INSTALLMENTS CLICK HERE.