As I swallowed, I felt the renewing warmth spread out from my throat and stomach, passing through my limbs and out to the tips of my fingers and toes. The sensation, after innumerable privations of the trail, was so pleasurable I could not help smiling. My injured leg tingled and I realized the pain was swiftly ebbing away to a distant memory. I flexed the limb and discovered it whole and hale once more.

The Grail Maiden extended her hands and I released the wonderful bowl. Inclining her head as she received the cup, she smiled at my delighted surprise, and then, holding her palm above the cup's rim, turned to Gereint.

Though I heard nothing, the instant she turned from me the young warrior raised his head and opened his eyes as if summoned. The angel offered him the cup, in the same way she had offered it to me, and Gereint took it in both hands, lifted it, and drank, draining the cup in great, gulping swallows, as if he could not get the liquid inside him fast enough. Then, embarrassed by his immoderate quaffing, he bent his head and returned the Holy Cup to the maiden, who accepted it nicely. She must have spoken a word of encouragement to him, for Gereint raised his head and smiled.

Then it was Bors' turn to drink from the cup, which he did with his customary exuberance. Seizing the proffered vessel in both hands, he elevated it once, twice, three times over the altar, then brought it to his mouth and drained it down – much as I had seen him do on countless occasions in Arthur's hall. Tilting back his head, he swallowed and then paused, savouring the draught before returning the empty bowl to the angel. 'Noble lady,' he said, the only one among us to speak aloud.

The Grail Maiden bent her head in acknowledgment and replaced the Sacred Cup on the altar stone, whereupon she raised her hands to shoulder height, palms outward, and said, 'Rise, friends, and stand.'

This time she spoke aloud, and oh! to hear that voice was to know the intimate ecstasy of a lover when beckoned by his best beloved. She called us friends, and I vowed within myself to be worthy of the word to the end of my earthly life.

'This day you have by grace been granted a foretaste of heaven's feast,' she told us. 'Those to whom much is given, much is required. Draw near by faith and stand at the altar where men's hearts are tried and known.'

Raising her face heavenward, she appeared to listen for a moment, and then began reciting aloud the words as she was given them. She said:

'Receive the word of the Lord! The Kingdom of Summer is close at hand, but the Evil One is closer still. He roars and raves, and roams the earthly crust ever seeking those he might destroy. Hold fast to the truth, my friends, and know in your hearts that where the King of Kings is honoured, evil cannot prevail. Remember, greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world. Fear nothing, but gird yourself for the battle to come, and cling to the Sword of your Salvation.

'I tell you the truth, the greatest among you fell from grace through the sin of pride. Trusting in strength was his weakness; trusting in wisdom was his folly. Lusting after honour, he was bewitched by one who honours only lust and lies. Thus are the mighty undone. Therefore, trust not in the strength of your arms, nor the wisdom of your minds; rather, trust in Him who made them, and who with His Swift Sure Hand upholds all things.

'Heed well the warning I give you: the battle is perilous, and it is deadly earnest. Yet, in the twistings of the fight, as in the darkness of the night, you are not alone. The Champion of Heaven rides before you; seize the victory in His name.'

The Grail Maiden bade us farewell, saying, 'The Grail abides. For the sake of all who stand in need of its blessing, I charge you to guard it well.' Raising her right hand, she made the sign of the cross, and said, 'All grace, and power, and righteousness be upon you now, and forevermore. So be it!'

She seemed to grow both larger and taller as she spoke, and her form lost its solidity, becoming crystalline and sharp before fading from sight in a muted flare of dazzling starlight. The gleam lingered for a while where she had stood, and then that, too, disappeared. When I looked, the Sacred Grail had vanished, and in its place was the same vessel I had seen in Arthur's hands at the consecration of the shrine. The altar stone was merely a stone once more, and the chapel only a bare room with walls of figured stone.

We three came slowly to ourselves, like men waking from a dream we all had shared. I looked at Bors and Gereint, and my heart moved within me to see them. Good and faithful men, noble-hearted, loyal through all things – to death, and beyond. How was it possible that I should have gained a portion of such friendship?

Gereint saw my look and said, 'If that was a dream, never wake me.'

'It was no dream,' Bors replied, stirring himself and looking around. 'Did you not drink from the Holy Cup?'

'What did it taste like to you?' asked Gereint.

'It was the wine, of course,' I told him. 'And fine wine, too.'

'Wine!' roared Bors. 'I wonder at you, Gwalchavad. It was never wine. Have I lived so long not to know mead when I taste it?' He looked to Gereint to support this assertion. 'What say you, brother? Mead or wine?'

'It was the sweetest, most pure water I have ever tasted,' replied Gereint, blissfully ignoring Bors' lead. 'Like water from a living spring.'

'Wine and water!' scoffed Bors, shaking his head in mystified disbelief. 'It was mead, I tell you. Mead! Sweet elixir of life, and libation of kings! How can anyone say otherwise?'

I gazed longingly at the altar. The cup remained, but not a glimmer of that wild, exultant light persisted. 'How strange,' I murmured to myself. 'We held eternity in our hands, had we but known.'

'Eh?' said Bors, glancing at me over his shoulder. 'What was that?'

'We have been given another chance,' I said. 'Let us vow here and now to prove ourselves worthy of our charge this time.'

'Aye,' Bors agreed solemnly. 'She called us Guardians, and I will die before I leave this place undefended.'

Gereint agreed, and we all pledged ourselves to stand guard over the Grail until Arthur returned, or death overtook us. 'We had best look outside,' I said, starting for the door.

'Lord Gwalchavad, your leg – ' Gereint began.

'There was healing in the cup,' I declared. 'I tell you, Bors, I feel more refreshed and alive than I have in years.'

His smile was ready and wide. 'I believe you, brother. For my part, I do not believe I ever felt this good.' He gazed around him in expectant wonder, as if hoping to see something of the splendour that we had witnessed only moments before. 'Truly, I begin to understand what Arthur must have felt when he was dragged from death's door.'

With the greatest reluctance, we left the altar and crossed the chapel to the door, where, one by one, we bowed low and passed through the narrow way. In recognition of my healing, I placed my rude staff just inside the door and stepped through. Once outside, the darkness struck us like the blow of a fist. Though the clearing still glimmered as if with pale moonlight, we reeled on our feet for a moment before finding our balance again.

'All is quiet,' mused Bors, gazing around at the forest, dark and forbidding as it loomed over the small circle of the clearing. 'As much as I wish it, I doubt it will remain so.'

I was about to suggest that one of us should make a circuit of the chapel to ensure that the clearing remained secure, when Bors said, 'Shh!' He stiffened, his eyes narrowing as he stared into the darkness.

Gereint and I froze and waited for Bors to speak. 'Someone is watching us,' Bors said after a moment, his voice low and tight. I heard Gereint ease his sword from the strap at his belt, and wished I had something better than a knife.