midnight
But they went on merrily , albeit their road winded so much , that the Sage told them , when evening was , that for their diligence they had but come a few short miles as the crow flies . Many wild things there were , both beast and fowl , in these islands and bridges of the rock-sea , hares and conies to wit , a many , and heathfowl , and here and there a red fox lurking about the crannies of the rock-wall . Ralph shot a brace of conies with his Turk bow , and whereas there were bushes growing in the chinks , and no lack of whin and ling , they had firing enough , and supped off this venison of the rocks . So passed that day and two days more , and naught befell , save that on the midnight of the first day of their wending the rock-sea , Ralph awoke and saw the sky all ablaze with other light than that of the moon ; so he arose and went hastily to the Sage , and took him by the shoulder , and bid him awake ; `` For meseems the sky is afire , and perchance the foe is upon us . '' The Sage awoke and opened his eyes , and rose on his elbow and looked around sleepily ; then he said laughing : `` It is naught , fair lord , thou mayst lie down and sleep out the remnant of the night , and thou also , maiden : this is but an earth-fire breaking out on the flank of the mountains ; it may be far away hence . Now ye see that he may not scale the rocks about us here without toil ; but to-morrow night we may climb up somewhere and look on what is toward . '' So Ralph lay down and Ursula also , but Ralph lay long awake watching the light above him , which grew fiercer and redder in the hours betwixt moonset and daybreak , when he fell asleep , and woke not again till the sun was high .