From an almost certain grave.
He drew his sword
As Evil roared
And bristled for attack,
With razor claws
And iron jaws
And armor 'cross it's back.
It fought quite well,
This King of Hell,
But Morul's heart was pure
And from it poured
Strength to his sword
As he battled Lucifer.
He drove it down
Against the ground,
The sword point at its beard.
Then fog rolled in,
When he looked again
The Devil'd disappeared.
Where did it flee?
Where could it be?
In rage Morul slashed the air,
Then he leapt to his steed
And raced through the trees
To the flatlands lying bare.
He rides for right,
Through days and nights,
Down country lanes, through towns;
An unending quest,
For he cannot rest
'Til the King of Hell is found.
**********
Murder
Though gentle breezes flutter,
A storm brews in thy breast,
For fear of sword comes closer,
And nearer comes thy dead.
Black clouds obscure the heavens
And the wild poppies bloom.
Comes closer to my weapon
And prepare to meet thy doom.
**********
My Prince
Stay close beside me tonight, my prince,
For when tomorrow dawns
You're going away to fight, my prince,
And lonely I'll be when you're gone.
Do not leave 'til the 'morrow, my prince;
Be not anxious to go.
I can't constrain the sorrow, my prince,
Nor hold back the tears that now flow.
Spend your last hours with me, my prince,
Before the morning glows
And I'll wait eternally, my prince,
Take my heart and a scarlet rose.
**********
Pailo
It's thirty below on Pailo tonight
And the second lieutenant's still lost.
The captain shouts, "Turn the search beam on
For he must be found at all costs."
"There's no sign of life," the computer voice cracks,
"Search completed and standing by."
"But he must be there!" the captain moans.
"It's inconceivable he should die."
The second officer shakes his head,
"We've done all we humanly can,
And it's my considered opinion, sir,
We must alert high command."
The captain collapses into his chair,
Wipes his brow with an unsteady hand.
The signal man stands at the radio
Awaiting the captain's command.
"No, by God!" shouts the captain, banging his fist
"I won't give up that easily.
Call a search party with sub-zero gear
To the transporter, then come with me."
Small chips of ice pelt the team
As they trudge through the knee deep snow.
Through their heavy helmets of zionite
They hear the wild winds blow.
There's a dozen of their finest men
And the captain in the lead;
He cautions each man to be on his guard
Then signals them to proceed.
While far out in space above their heads
A Hawken destroyer rose
From deep in the shadows where it's hull
Glinted gray like a murky ghost.
The lights spring on as the laser fires,
Red beams smash Explorer's bow.
The bridge command shouts, "Deflectors on!"
"Sorry sir, but it's too late now."
The ship rocks and bucks with every blast
As the beams eat the hull away.
One explosion follows another until
The fiery ship reels through space.
And far, far below in the icy cold
They watch the fire ball
Arc as it crosses the stratosphere,
In the distance, growing small.
The captain's heart leaps with a wild thud
Then slowly sinks back in place.
He flips his communicator on,
But the beam bounces off through space.
They all stand close with baited breaths,
Their hearts and brains were numb,
Waiting, just silently waiting
For an answer that will not come.
It's fifteen below on Pailo today,
And the days are as dark as the nights.
The tiny crew huddles against the cold
With ice cubes instead of eyes.
They search, vainly search, the heavens above
But there's nothing out there to see.
The High Command thinks that they're all dead
And they probably will soon be.
**********
Raise Your Swords
"Raise your sword, we'll battle the horde,
Brave lads, to the front we go,
And we'll show no fear, as we finish them there
To keep them from our homes.
We'll give our lives to protect our wives,,
Our daughters and our sons.
We'll fight for right with all our might
'Til the war at last is won."
So we beat our drums and left our sons,
Our daughters and our wives.
The bugles blared 'til they cracked the air
As we offered up our lives.
The fife blew shrill from o'er the hill
And the enemy was met.
We fought for days in the hot sun's blaze;
They were days we'll ne'er forget.
We saw such things as human beings
Should never ever see.
The horror, the fear, one never hears
Of these in tales of glory.
We held our breath as we gazed at death
And stared at him full face.
The blood and pain burned in our brains;
The total human waste.
Yet we knew that our cause was true;
We only defended us.
We had no doubt it would all turn out
With our band victorious.
There was moral right upon our side
And we beat the enemy soundly.
We licked the foe, then turned for home
As we marched with our banner proudly.
**********
Raphael
From an ancient spell
Came Raphael
And the horse with the golden mane,
And they rode like the wind
To battle sin
From the mountains to the plains.
His armor glowed
As he bravely rode
And his sword hung at his side.
Then he met a maid
In the forest glade
And there his virtue died.
For her hair was gold,
Her eyes were bold,
And her skin was pale and white.
Her lips were red
As the blood she shed
When she seduced the knight.
In a puff of smoke
The spell was broke
And the hero, Raphael,
Fell in disgrace,
For he'd abased
The power of Arramell.
And the stone, once pure,
Lay dull and blurred,
Blighted by his passions;
And the power, once strong,
Was lost and gone,
And all his hopes were ashes.
So to atone
He rode alone
Through the forest, cold and black.
He left her there,
With her golden hair,
And he never e'en looked back.
Like a ghost he roams,
And he'll never come home
'Til the stone glows bright again,
For though hope is bleak,
The hero seeks
Forgiveness for his sin.
**********
Ride Away, Johnny Boy
Johnny's leavin' for the war,
Johnny's leavin' for the war;
Won't be comin' back no more.
Ride away, Johnny boy.
Johnny cocked his rifle gun,
Johnny cocked his rifle gun,
And all the Yanks were on the run.
Ride away, Johnny boy.
Johnny's brave and Johnny's strong,
Johnny's brave and Johnny's strong,
He thinks that he must right this wrong.
Ride away, Johnny boy.
Johnny's fightin' left and right,
Johnny's fightin' left and right,
He's watchin' men die day and night.
Ride away, Johnny boy.
Johhny hears the cannons boom,
Johhny hears the cannons boom,
Spellin' out my darlin's doom.
Ride away, Johnny boy.
Johnny cocked his rifle gun,
Johnny cocked his rifle gun,
Now he's dyin' in the sun.
Ride away, Johnny boy.
Johnny's captain came to me,
Johnny's captain came to me,
He said he stood and watched him bleed.
Ride away, Johnny boy.
Johnny's finally comin' back,
Johnny's finally comin' back,
In a big coach painted black.
Ride away, Johnny boy.
Johnny was buried yesterday,
Johnny was buried yesterday,
I begged him not to go away.
Ride away, Johnny boy.
**********
Sand
A hot wind blew out of the south
And the sand shifted lazily;
It rippled across the vast wasteland
Like an endless golden sea.
Crossing the horizon a caravan
Of stately desert ships,
With Bedouins in flowing robes
Perched proudly on their hips.
Silently they moved o'er burning sand
And there was no end to it.
They traveled from birth to death and on;
'Twas fate, they clearly knew it.
Since time began and the birth of man
These vagabonds have wandered.
As old as the wind, as old as the sand,
As old as the lives they've squandered.
**********
Sing Me a Song
“Sing me a song, true love, true love;
Sing me a song, sweet fairie.
Sing me a song, true love, true love,
But keep it light and airy.”
“I know no song, true love, true love;
I know no song,” said the fairie.
“I know no song, true love, true love,
That be sung both light and airy.”
“Then I'll drink my cup, true love, true love;
I'll drink my cup, sweet fairie.
I'll drink my cup, true love, true love,
And I'll no longer tarry.”
“Then drink your cup, true love, true love;
Drink your cup,” said the fairie.
“Drink your cup, true love, true love.
I'll no longer have ye tarry.”
“You're a lovely lass, true love, true love;
You're a lovely lass, sweet fairie.
You're a lovely lass, true love, true love,
The kind I fain would marry.”
“Tis your cup that speaks, true love, true love;
Tis your cup that speaks,” said the fairie.
“Tis your cup that speaks, true love, true love,
For tis none of ye I'd marry.”
**********
Sing To Me Gently
Sing to me gently, my soft-hearted lover,
As away we go riding across the green clover;
'Cross forests and fields and over the hills
'Til we come to the white cliffs of Dover.
Strum to me gently upon your sweet lyre,
Melodious rhapsodies to give my heart fire,
And there in its glow let the song ebb and flow
'Til I'm awash in the flood of desire.
**********
The Abandoned Garden
The wind whistled through the rusty gate
And hinges creaked ominously.
Brown leaves swept the path o'er grown with grass
and the borders lay strangled with weeds.
The pale moon rose in the midnight sky;
Silver beams struggled down through the trees.
The scent of the flowers rose soft on the breeze,
Nearly lost in the stench of decay.
The white marble benches, finely carved,
That had once been so tastefully placed,
Now stood neglected, covered in dust
And a tangle of spider's lace.
Pale faded blossoms peeped gingerly
From their shrouds in the underbrush
And the dead like silence was shattered
By the cry of the woodland thrush.
And all of the garden joined his lament
For the glorious days, grand and lush.
**********
The Ancient Tomb
Sealed in the tomb
Was the crown of doom
On the ancient brow of bone,
And his knights, so bold,
Had long grown cold,
Their bodies turned to stone.
Once they were men
Their city. The legends tell
How in defeat
They did retreat
To an old abandoned well.
The foe flung rocks
'Til they filled the top
And the well became their tomb.
There they did lay
For centuries
In the hole that was their doom.
No one cried
For those who died,
Adventurers came and went.
They've searched the ground,
But they've never found
This place where these souls were spent.
**********
The Betrayal
Emerald eyes of a goddess,
Ah, Chantel! Daughter of the king.
In thy wake bold men stand speechless
To hear thy beauty sing.
No rose can match thy beauty,
No pearl is as white as thy flesh,
No love can swell thy bosom
Like the love of Steven Ash.
Boldest of all outlaws was he;
Fiercest of warriors, brave and sure.
He feared no king, but with spirit free
He loved Chantel, so pure.
The three blind sisters wove their fate
And intertwined their separate threads.
The gods up in the heavens smiled
And touched their golden heads.
Their secret vows were made one night;
Upon the moon they pledged their love,
Eternal as the stars that glow,
Bright as the light above.
Steven's partner, a black haired wench,
With passion burning in her veins,
Swore she'd win her comrade’s love,
No matter what the pain.
She lured him below the casement
Where the proud Chantel did stand,
Then she kissed his lips and held his face
In her soft, fevered hands.
Chantel kne
w not the wench's plot
And in her heart hell's fire burned.
Her eyes were ice, her face was pale;
She thought her love was spurned.
Oh, hell has nothing to compare
With the agony of distrust
And love becomes an obscure path
When a lover is unjust.
She sent a message to the king
That told of Steven's hiding place,
And shortly then, they brought him in,
The outlaw, Steven Ash.
They took him to a dungeon cell
And beat him 'til his blood ran red.
Watching nearby sat proud Chantel;
He smiled and he said:
"No rose can match thy beauty,
No pearl is as white as thy flesh.
No lover shall thee ever have
That loves thee like Steven Ash.
And though tomorrow they hang me,
My darling, I shall feel no fear,
If thou wilt come and hold my hand
And spend our last night here."
She wept and slowly she stood up,
And so slowly she walked away.
She sat on the steps of the gallows
'Til the sky was turning gray.
She listened to the morning birds
As they sang their mournful tune.
The guards marched Steven from his cell
And all was over soon.
No roses for Chantel today,
Her emerald eyes have no flash,
For never again will she find true love
Like the love of Steven Ash.
Oh, never may Chantel forget;
His sweet touch she'll remember,
And she who betrayed her only love
Now weeps alone in her chamber.
**********
The Dagger
Give me your dagger, my own true love;
The one with the long, thin blade.
Give me your dagger, my only love,
And I'll send you to your grave.
**********
The Death of a Confederate Soldier
Roslinn, oh, sweet Roslinn,
Why do you moan and wail?
They've taken your lover to the graveyard
And there he'll forever dwell.
Mother, oh dear mother,
Why is it that you weep?
Your only son lies in his grave
Forevermore to sleep.
Good friend, oh his best friend,