Telling Tales

tales be told of mermaids fair

breasts uncovered but for hair

scales of aqua on their fins

cold saline running through their veins

leviathans dwell fathoms deep

where secrets of the dark they keep

pushing back the sands of time

undiscovered serpentines

fairies ring around in glens

entrapping hearts of mortal men

elven ears there listen too

avoiding giants like me and you

and in the caverns dense and deep

trolls survive and rarely sleep

while plotting deeds to frighten kids

that speak and frolic crossing bridge

imagination, gnomes and beasts

gathered waiting for the feast

where tales are told of aliens

that walk and talk and look like men

and do the strangest deeds recalled

the tales of mankind beat them all

always searching for a ring

the precious gold that riches bring

seeing not the magic found

in simple tales above the ground

but seek the ghostly, goblins, ghouls

in fairyland we are the fools

jesters to the world of kings

acquisition, shiny things

bauble-hatted harlequins

juggling loaded bowling pins

while fairy folk look on aghast

in tales of wonder who will last

monsters, dragons keep their peace

to reclaim world when we’re deceased

when we become the tales then told

strange mortals from the days of old

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Legends In Lost Valley

Petrified in valley of the lost

like legends stood

Mutations of the mountains harboured

nothing that was good

Spat forth for a vengeance

from the bowels of the earth

Practised patience outwith time

awaiting secret birth

To ponder into places where no man

knew their name

To mix and match and mortify

heartless just the same

As when erupted from the fire

secreted way down deep

Sadists raised, sadistic birthed

humanity to reap

See them, hear them, guess their names

spot them in your lives

Could be neighbour, brother, child

could be someone’s wife

Loiter in the valley still

changing as they must

See all evil, do all evil

undermine all just

Petrified though once they were

characters of stone

Hills will call them back in time

to answer and atone

Dredging In The Zone

lost leviathan

dredging 

amid clouds

seeking home

puffs dispersed

she looked upon me

blinked the briefest wink

and she was gone

left behind the promise

ovoid birthrights

devoid dragon

glimpsed alone

humoured by the sky

and deepest waters

untethered for a spell

met in the zone

Silent Screech

Sheltered in shadows till light disappeared,

Urged into night with a screech,

Hung by my feet till wings found release,

Shackled by lack of sight, leeched

Into the gloaming, soft darknes held dear,

Strident but silent my speech,

Seeking an echo to steer my path clear,

All vision just out of my reach.

Flitted and flirted with posturing objects,

Clamoured in darkness with sound,

Wilderness wild in every aspect,

Not a whisper of you to be found,

Back to my haven, my roost for the day,

Hoisted by end to my flight,

Each night that encroaches I have my say,

Hidden but hellbent on fight.

Bats in the belfry, bats in the barn,

Bats that seek out your source,

Pipistrelles, vampires, creatures with fangs,

Bloodthirsty for want of discourse.

I’ve tasted your scent and it soars my desire,

Nothing but you will suffice,

Starved I will be till I find you again,

Ambition cannot think twice.

Waiting in wings, in towers, your roof,

Scratching till day turns to night,

Champing at bit till one found aloof,

Neck raised to the stars, what a sight! 

Bounty is mine when wings find their tips,

When fangs in my face thirst, it’s true,

Seeping through blackness, I’m whetting my lips

Lusting for sacrifice. You.

Beyond Reason

P marks the point…

right there, on the chart…

where the two intersect…

Yes, that was the moment of meeting…

but we’ve charted their rise

and they each had begun

long before then

independently

moving and seeking

the spot of eclipse

where each shadowed one

neither obscuring

but circling…

moving in tandem…

hovering it seems…

checking for compass…

or something…

That was the point…

just there where you see…

occlusion…

confusion

colliding…

But zooming on in…

we’re surprised by results…

an orbit is there…

but strangely to say

it’s a weird one…

And that’s all that we have…

we don’t know what it’s called…

predictions can’t guess…

it’s not on our charts…

we can’t really say

if two will unite…

merger to move…

fusion divined…

or dividing…

Truth is to say…

where P marks the spot…

From this distance…

I’d say…

It’s beyond us.

Up In Smoke

Climbed to rooftop,

found warm chimney,

perched as bird might do,

darted eyes,

questioned skies,

inhaled for breath of you,

Remnant fire,

 cloud wisps gathered,

having heard the plea,

cushioned flight

‘cross endless night,

taken so to thee.

No more lair,

as fox once was,

timid, shelter found,

burrow’d fear

from hostile hounds

hunted to the ground,

till tortured route

to higher plain

lent a diff’rent view

from chimney pot,

where dreams are wrought,

disembodied fox, smoke flew.

 

On The Wing

Freedom’s just another word for floating on the breeze,

A flightless bird that’s found its song and wings,

A carousel suspended in current’s twirling ease,

Carousing, fulsome-throated as it sings.

Flight, another fantasy, for rising in the air,

Above the noise and fracking far below,

Penchant of the pensive and all dreamers everywhere,

New direction for a world that spins too slow.

Upwards is a preference as onwards to the wind,

Uninhibited, unleashed, euphoric verve,

Harmonious high in helium’d mind,

Flight of visions distant, sought by nerve.

If The Cosmos Spoke…

You shall not take the world and all its wonders

And pack them into boxes for display,

Charging entrance fee as if you own it,

Global feudal masters of the day.

You shall not house my children in your ghettoes,

Vaunt your wealth, exacting servitude,

Domineering cultures as your fiefdom,

Simple things are seen as bad and good.

You shall not pose as masters of the universe,

A blip you are, a cosmic dot in time,

Ignoring all spiritual iterations,

Marking what is ours as yours or mine.

You shall not kill the planet with your fighting,

Polluting light of day with endless night,

Cultivating chaos to the order

Ordained when starbust made all chaos right.

You shall not conquer life with fear and favour,

Declarations cruel or dissident,

Holding back evolving plan and aspect,

Plans there are but none of this intent.

You shall not pass, these boundaries are secluded,

Enshrouded in the stars of galaxies,

Wormed parallels forever life engendered,

Your arrogance anathema to me.

You shall be bound by all your acts, inactions,

Held account when futures come to pass,

‘Trespassers will be prosecuted’.

Note these words, they may well be your last.

Turn again to light, my beams command it,

The source of all you are, you foolish tribe,

Indistinct from dinosaurs, all hist’ry,

Begotten from the light that dwells inside.

Woe to you, this covenant, it falters,

Rainbow cast is fading fast upon

The darkness that engulfs before the herald

Of another life, another age that dawns.

 

Hades On Horseback

What cloven horsemen ride upon the wind here,

Striking hooves on sharpened edge of waves,

Hunched and headlong, shrouded cloaks protecting,

Eyemasks glinting red? No fortune saves

Any in their path, though flight above us,

The heels of jeopardy are felt below,

Riding willfully to depths of nowhere,

Pistols drawn and daggers tucked to show

No enemy that’s found within their flightpath

Or foe espied, from fathoms far above,

Have hope or faith, outrunning is no option,

Bow’d their heads, and ours as sacrificial dove.

What earthly gate or hellish palace hides them

In daylight hours, these princes of the dark?

Where upon the shores of any peoples

Do black knights harbour steeds and stable mark?

Who betrays location as they search here,

Plots the points upon the charted graph?

Who drowns gladly in the tidal wave of hoofbeats

Pounding on while evil horsemen laugh?

Are any there who hear the fairground laughter,

The cackle of the master turning wheels

As rainbow-coloured equines carry minions,

The hounds of hell on horseback as night squeals?

 

Gondoliers of Light

Navigated clouds, we did,

Packed for journey’s end,

Gondolier’d beams’ passages

Through gate of soul’s best friend.

Rode on waves of denser mass,

Cast shadows far below,

Soared to heights of ecstasy,

Paid dues for Peter’s show.

Lived the light, drank in its worth,

Streamed it through the night,

Believed in dawn, its heraldry,

Basked in glory bright.

Travelled far in torpor’s wake,

Languid in our bliss,

Transcended life in heaven’s arms,

Partook of its warm kiss.

Image courtesy of sattva / FreeDigitalPhotos.net