The twilight of the day draws near,
The blazing sun is laid to rest,
And dimming skies let stars appear
That twinkle in the bloodstained west.

The once warm air turns cold and still,
Long drawn out shadows gently fade,
While birdsong that before was shrill
Falls silent in a soft cascade.

The rooftops change from red to black,
So too the rising spiralled wisps
Of smoke churned up from chimney stacks
And stoves of wood burnt cinder crisp.

And everywhere nights velvet brush
Begins to daub the landscape whole,
Descending with a quiet hush
That calms the nerves and soothes the soul.

Until the end when all too soon
The final vestiges of day
Are bade farewell by the new moon
Who cannot help but smile away.

Inside the Rainbow Forest
Where unicorns are born,
And fairy dust floats on the air
From sundown until dawn,
There dwells in royal splendour
Yet very rarely seen,
The king of all the pixies
With his pretty pixie queen.

His palace is a mushroom
As tall as any tree,
With bright red spots upon it
That will make you squeal with glee.
A winding golden staircase
Stretches to the very top,
In a mesmerizing spiral
That you think will never stop.

All those brave enough to climb it
Would soon chance upon a door,
With the most enormous knocker
That you really ever saw.
One hard tap summons the butler,
A polite and friendly gnome,
Serving tea and fondant fancies
That will make you feel at home.

Through a maze of vaulted chambers
Each more lavish than the last,
Passing walls lined with the portraits
Of kings from the distant past,
That dear gnome shall gently guide you,
With much merriment and song,
To the Great Hall of his master
Who resides there all day long.

From beneath a silver archway
Set with precious gems galore,
You will enter to the fanfare
Of ten trumpets, maybe more.
Dainty apple blossom petals
Shall be scattered at your feet,
As you bow your head in homage
To the king you are to meet.

With a heart bursting with wonder
You will hastily be brought,
To the throne of his most highness
Far across the royal court,
Threading through the marble towers
Of an ornate colonnade,
And a troupe of prancing dragons
With their riders on parade.

Seated high upon a pumpkin
In a matching orange gown,
Curly shoes of bright green velvet
And an elderflower crown,
The king shall bid you welcome
With a beaming toothy grin,
As he beckons to the minstrel
For the music to begin.

With his beard like cotton candy
Waving wildly in the air,
As he slides down to embrace you
From atop his lofty chair,
Both your arms shall link together
To the fiddler's merry tune,
Clicking heels and laughing loudly
As you skip around the room.

In the magic of the moment
You will give yourself to fun,
As the mischief making monarch
Tweaks your ears and cracks a pun,
All those cares your heart now carries
Shall dissolve and simply be
Lost in wondrous celebration
Of a pixie jamboree!

Atop the blanched plume of a pampas grass stem,
Overlooking a sea of white daisies
Stretching out to the edge of a wild flower lea
Where the forget-me-not bumblebee lazes,
Is the grandiose house of the butterfly king
Filled with treasures and precious excesses,
With a bright yellow spire built from pollen ball bricks
Home to three rather lovely princesses.

The fairest of all in that field and beyond
Their beauty was famed and fought over
By the slow sliding slug sheiks of blackberry nook
And the ladybird lords camped in clover.
Each one with wide eyes firmly fixed on a prize
That made shy spiders scurry and scutter,
To see those red painted yet delicate wings
Underneath sun kissed skies gently flutter.

Lovesick and besotted with hearts beating fast
Each suitor petitioned for marriage,
To win for themselves a sweet butterfly bride
To parade in a crab apple carriage.
But the majestic monarch alongside his queen,
Both filled with parental devotion,
Wished for their three daughters to choose for themselves
And would not entertain such a notion.

King Neptune sat upon his saline throne
And cried out loud to all the sea drenched sway,
"More sport, more sport" he yelled unto his own,
"That I might ease the boredom brought this day.
You, Dolphin, bring your wisdom unto me
And pray tell of that light, that coastal hue
Which cuts the dark asunder to my sea,
'Cross leaden skies to blind us all we few."

A hastening fin and quickly to his place,
The wise old Dolphin, gripped with fear and awe,
Bowed solemnly, then with a gentle grace
Explained what shone upon his master's shore.
"The glare, those slicing beams that shine at night
Warn pending doom to all who sail to near,
The jagged teeth of rocks are such a sight
To instil e'en the hardest men with fear.

Men's hands, those mortal gems the gods employ,
Have seized upon the danger of it all,
And built a structure warning of the ploy
Of all Sea Lords to bring about their fall.
And so the Lighthouse, named with ample sense,
Can only mean a blasphemy to thee,
So sailors can quite safely trespass hence
From port to port, unto the open sea."

(Neptune)
"No more! My once cool spirit rages hot
And boils a fury charring to the bone,
I see the House of Human has forgot
That they are ours, amusing us alone.
We Gods, we masters of their finite lives
Demand their will, their thoughts, their breathing souls,
To serve without regret our divine hives
With worship, prayer, and swinging incense bowls.

Strange feeling, 'tis the curdling of my blood,
The clotting of my rage to pure disdain,
Revenge is stoked where once pure anger stood,
Enough to charge mankind to think again.
Come trident keeper, serve my thrice pronged arm
And gird my ***** with implements of war,
The time has come to use such lethal charm
That foolish men like these cannot ignore.

A bellowed word, the tide is at my tongue
And wave on wave is mercy to my feet,
Children of the sea rise up in song
And on the Lighthouse moorings thrash and beat.
Seek victory, seize woe upon that hill
And raze in moistened load their pillared sin,
My kingdom shall devour this bitter pill,
'Til it shall be as if it had not been."

On land a Priest, Tiberius by name,
A servant to the Goddess of the Hunt,
Meanwhile had climbed the saturated frame
To view with nonchalance the ocean front.
These seven days had seen Diana's shrine
Find several hundred pilgrims on its plot,
And feeling soon the strains of the divine
Had hoped the walk would ease his troubled lot.

Upon the coast he'd found this Titan's torch
When from his daily burdens he had fled,
A walk one hour from the lunar porch
Where tithes were paid and healing prayers were said.
And from the top he surveyed all the world
Around about, inland and to the sea,
And marvelled at the way the water curled
Itself onto the shore so constantly.

Though mesmerised, his senses were not dulled,
A sound, a buzz, a percolating hum
Fell on his ears until his eyes were pulled
To ripples forming in the salty ****.
A tremor was the herald he surmised
For one whose habitation was the sea,
But even then what 'rose before his eyes
Was something that he thought would never be.

A giant crowned with royal ornament
And plates of golden armour on his chest,
Reared up out of the depths in quick movement
Which saw the waves removed and pulled abreast.
A thunderclap and lightening bolts galore
Along with all the earthquakes there could be,
Made our heroic priest fear all the more
As Neptune stood astride the choppy sea.

The stature of a God cannot be ruled,
But here Tiberius measured a mile,
From sandalled feet to head and hair bejewelled
With water droplet gems set regal style.
He noticed that this ocean deity
Well placed amongst the swells of his domain,
Now roll his eyes towards him hatefully
And bellow words the skies could not contain.

"Six nights in seven I have seen the light
From this abomination cast a spell,
And give to those that would not have insight,
A knowledge of the coastal rocks that dwell.
Tonight I will destroy it piece by piece
And reclaim once again the water's grave,
The perils of my realm will then increase
And men of ships I once more shall enslave.
I call upon all life of which I rule
And Mother Nature's elemental froth,
Join with me in the use of anger's tool,
Tear down each brick with undiluted wrath!"

Tiberius was quick in his reply,
His nerves suppressed to give a hardened look,
Inside a churning stomach would not lie
Yet somehow courage managed this rebuke,
" I care not for the wars of Gods and Men,
But hearken Neptune, hear this heartfelt pledge,
Strike not your hand against this lighted den
For by that action you would cross the edge.
The earth beneath my feet is holy ground
And sanctioned sacred at the throne of Jove,
I prayed my blessing when I heard the sound,
That ****** of rushing water in your grove."

The Sea God boomed displeasure with a roar
That pierced the cooling air with heated might,
A calmness quickly soothed him to the core
Though whitened knuckles gripped his trident tight.
"How can this be from one whose station's known
To beg the favour of the King of Kings,
Your faith is to one God and one alone
And subject only to the gift she brings.
I do not recognise the swift dictate
You prayed unto my brother in the heights,
Your life is therefore forfeit to The Fates,
As I condemn to death your house of lights."

No more was said but actions stole the words
Before Tiberius could speak again,
This Sea Lord with his head amongst the birds
Now caused the air to turn, the sky to rain.
He strode towards the object of his ills
With nothing but contempt within his eyes,
Incanting as he went the magic frills
Positions such as his can realise.

And so our priest expecting deaths divide
To halt the smooth meander of his life,
Stood firm with very little hope inside
That something could release him from this strife.
With quickened breath he ****** the salty air
To calm a body gripped with cold and fear,
His final thoughts would be in silent prayer,
Preparing for the end that drew so near.

The wind blew stronger and the rain lashed down,
A mix of spray and torrents from the sky,
The wet had found his priestly robes and gown
And now they clung unlike when they were dry.
One footstep, two, three more and then no light,
As all of Neptune's bulk eclipsed the sun,
The Lighthouse trembled in the pseudo night,
Lo Judgment Day for our brave priest had come.

And so the scene, a God engulfed with rage
About to battle mortar, brick, and bone,
Freed from the bonds of his salt water cage
By mortal acts that he could not condone.
With one hand raised and trident poised to strike,
The King of all the Oceans took his aim,
And without pause he loosed the three pronged pike
So that it flew unhindered to the game.
It did not falter, neither did it swerve
Nor did it slow by friction of the air,
But straight and true, devoid of any curve
It sailed towards the Lighthouse that was there.

And all Tiberius could do was watch
And wait the lethal throw by Neptune's hand,
Closer and closer, ready to dispatch
His sorry soul to Pluto's hallowed land.
In seconds all he knew of life on Earth
Would perish at the will of the divine,
And that which had been granted his from birth
Would disappear into the sands of time.

Dance fairy, fairy bright,
What a truly happy sight,
Let those tiny feet away
To a place of fun and play.
Make your wings of silver hue
Take you to the lily zoo,
To the courts of croaking kings,
Where the handsome Frog Prince sings.

Dance dance fairy, fairy bright
Skip across the clouds so light,
Jump as far as skyward can,
Higher higher little man.
Glide upon the rush of air
With the birds that fly up there,
And when all the playing's done
Take those wings and fly back home.

Where is my left?
Where is my right?
What is this mist that eclipses the light?
What are my bearings
And where is the sun?
I cannot go back
And I cannot sail on.
I am lost,
I am lost,
Will I ever be free
Of this fingerlike fog
On this mystery sea.

Her eyes spoke the words that her lips never said
As she lay there in silence curled up on the bed,
A solitary teardrop meandering her face
That fell from flushed cheeks onto bed sheets of lace.

With a vacant expression and hollowed out stare
Concealing the heartbreak and utter despair,
She clung to the pillow, so tight to her chest,
Upon which the head of her true love would rest.

The rose of her heart had succumbed to decay,
Faded, diminished, and withered away,
Blackened by misery, hardened through grief,
And drained of all passion by death's cunning thief.

Her once perfect world like those empires of old
Had crumbled to ruin, so desolate and cold,
No longer would love warm her soul like the sun
For the harshest of winters had now just begun.

In the recess of memory, precious and pure,
Her lover's last kiss would forever endure,
A comfort in sorrow and constant lament
Till the days of her own life are equally spent.

She strode the stage in swathes of silk
That swished in synchronicity
To the drum beat,
As in the heat
Her voice oozed electricity.
It coursed the room
With her perfume
In concert with those sultry tones,
Deep in the groove,
So velvet smooth
Like chocolate o'er the microphone.
All eyes were fixed
Upon that mix
Of swinging hips
And painted lips,
Her clientele a lust fuelled fire,
All whetted mouths and dark desire.
Yet in the midst of all those cheers,
The wolf whistles and sexist jeers,
She played her set of old school jazz
With elegance and pure pizzazz.

The steady peal of church bells
Rang out without a care,
Borne on a biting east wind
With snowflakes in the air.

The warming chimes were carried
On blizzard driven gales,
That bleached the parish rooftops
And whitewashed once green dales.

A bleak midwinter blanket
Stretched well beyond the eye,
Up to the far horizon
Where pasture meets the sky.

While in the vale, a cluster
Of houses fought the chill
Beneath a bleating bell tower
And chapel on the hill.

The bright star of my life has dimmed
And casts in shade the years before,
When hope and love and longing brimmed
My youthful cup, but now no more.

Where is the time, those heady days
I courted brashly, blind and bold,
And squandered in so many ways
Without a thought of growing old.

Where have you gone my perfect youth
That once my heart and soul defined,
For now I face a dreadful truth,
Less days to come than left behind.

Far over the mumbling Mountains of Moan
Where blazing hot Firebirds are nurtured and flown,
Through silver veined canyons and mines filled with gold
By Dwarves in their halls seeking riches untold.

There lives by the side of a babbling brook,
Buried deep in the earth, in it's own special nook,
Underneath a quite small yet conspicuous knoll,
Hidden from prying eyes is the home of a Troll.

Alone in his cavern of amethyst ore,
He sleeps undisturbed with a grunt and a snore,
And makes the ground tremble with dream induced growls
That fly up with spit from his thick flapping jowls.

The floor all around is a sea of gnawed bones
Stained pink by the light from those crystalline stones,
That shimmer and sparkle like miniature storms
Left raging for aeons in mineral forms.

His slow beating heart sounds a deep thumping boom
That scythes through the half light and twinkling gloom,
By which, if you look in the cold that persists,
The Troll's heavy breath funnels up into mists.

A great iron club with its spots of rust red
Stands upright and ready close by to his bed,
The Troll's hairy fingers draped over his prize
To ****** at the hilt should the instant arise.

One beady eye open, the other shut fast,
Only the foolhardy would dare to creep past,
Wake him at your peril, no need to surmise,
You will meet a brutal and violent demise.

A wrinkled behemoth with rings through his nose,
The truth of his origin, nobody knows,
Some say Trolls were spawned at the dawn of the world
When primeval magics and such swished and swirled.

While others less fanciful look to the West
Where dark Elvish wizards in black arts invest,
The wrong incantation performed on a man
Is rumoured to be how the Troll race began.

No life left,
The fire has almost gone.
Light fades
To shades,
The dark advances on.
The creeping gloom,
The pressing weight of fear
That once the torch held back
Starts to draw near.
I will the flame,
My final flickering friend,
Do not die,
Do not die,
Lest into black I blend.

Eternity contains therein
The essence of what might have been,
The words you would have said to me
And I to you reciprocally,
If sooner our two hearts had met
And never friends but lovers set.
O what a heart wrenched tragedy
Of you and him, not you and me.

There is a cottage by a disused well,
And in it lives a strange and haggard crone,
Knock on her door and she will give a tell
Of future moments yet to you unknown.
No crystal ***** or scattered runic tiles,
No divinations of the palm or flame,
Her forecasts lie in bodies she defiles,
The practice of the necromancer's game.

The subtle shimmers of the candlelight
Reveal the hidden shadows of the night,
And beckons forward faces from the past,
A long lost love, the first but not the last.
An old acquaintance from so long ago
Is recreated in the yellow glow,
But fades again when some elusive draught
Proclaims my own ineptness for The Craft.

Not so soon
Dark Moon,
Let us enjoy awhile
Your pleasant smile.

Rest now that sweet delightful head
Upon the ***** of your bed,
Shut tight those eyes and drift away
On dreams of unreality.
And let the sandman take your hand,
A guide through this your slumberland,
Where all you've ever wished for rides
The wave crests of ethereal tides.

I left my cares upon the clouds
That drifted slowly up on high,
And watched unburdened from the ground
As each one floated gently by.

The breeze shall carry them afar,
Across the bluebell covered lea,
Beyond the winking Evenstar
And on towards the rolling sea.

My heart's world weariness has waned
And leaps instead to find release,
A soul that once was vexed and pained
Can now perhaps revisit peace.

The first time that we stole a kiss
I fell in love right from the start,
For in that moment of pure bliss
Your velvet lips ensnared my heart.

The magic of your mouth on mine
And soft caresses from your hand,
Were altogether so divine,
A joy I barely could withstand.

Your sweet intoxicating scent
And fragrant aura framed your face,
That caused such feelings to ferment,
I lost myself in your embrace.

I found my heaven in your arms
And could not pull myself away,
A victim of your tender charms
To which, my love, I hope to stay.

I dare not tell her, dare not say
I watch her almost every day,
She stole my heart and does not know
How much I truly love her so.

Behind the safety of the glass,
The window that she rushes past,
I'm always careful not to stir
The curtains hiding me from her.

I ****** a glance or maybe two
As quickly she glides into view,
My hands grow clammy just to see
My one true love in front of me.

My heart beats faster as my eyes
Dance on her midriff and her thighs,
I take a breath and exhale loud,
It fogs the glass in a hot cloud.

Such joy is the imagined bliss
Of just one moment, just one kiss,
To hold her firmly in my arms,
Unable to resist my charms.

To touch her, smell her, make her mine,
Sends sublime shivers down my spine,
I know she'd love me just the same
If only she could know my name.

I'll make her understand my love,
This angel sent from up above,
Perhaps tomorrow I'll say hi
When once again she races by.

I watched the most exquisite bloom,
An object for admiring eyes,
Glide gracefully into the room
And sail upon a sea of sighs.

Resplendent in a satin gown
That matched her long cascading hair,
Rich auburn curls that trickled down
Soft flawless skin her dress laid bare.

Her beauty sparkled like a star
And stole the gaze and sideways glance
Of every man, both near and far,
Transfixed by her pure elegance.

A vision truly to behold
Of ravishing seductive style,
If only she would be so bold
To look up and return a smile.

Would that I could remember her face,
Her glorious smile and feminine grace,
And would that I could a memory stir
To recall the days that I spent with her.

Would that I could her sweet scent approve,
To wallow in each fragrant curve,
And would that I could feel kisses like rain
That she used to give me again and again.

Would that I could her gossamer hair
Upon my pillow find it there,
And would that I could time's barrier move
To once more have her as my love.

Invoke the beast,
And unleash the salivating wretch
Upon unprepared man.
Feed,
Take blood,
Uncoil the serpent,
Set it free,
Weep not for your humanity
It is dead.
Dead!
Deader than a dodo's head,
Deader than the driest bed
Of once quick flows of water,
Fish,
That swam together
Swish and swish.
Silence!
Do not speak but be
Calm and elementary,
Examine and evaluate
The very essence of your state.
Close your eyes
And inward look
and deep,
Inside each dark recess,
Each nook
and peep
Along those contours of the soul
Where evil thoughts and deeds not done
Lie waiting for that loaded gun to fire,
BANG!
Do you see the plumes of bloodlust carry?
This is you.
If so then go,
If nay then stay
And tarry a while to clarify the node.
We breathe the air of demon spawn
Each one of us since we were born
For at conception
There began
A process unlike mortal man
Can ponder,
Wonder,
Split his fragile mind asunder
To believe.

Delirium.
I am cast down.
Cannot the damning fires of hell be quenched?
The raging flames torment my winged breast,
And O the heat infects me with it's pain.
Behold the testimony to an unjust God,
Jehovah's mercy absent unto me,
For here I stand condemned of heinous crimes
And wrongly judged unclean eternally.
My Gehenna,
My fiery plateau,
My kingdom of unremitting hate,
Wage war upon the heavenly host
And those that would desire Him most.

Each morning when I wake up to
Sweet wonderful and perfect you,
I kiss you on the lips and say
"I love you more than yesterday."


And as you look back with those eyes
That marry sleep with mild surprise,
You gently smile and say my name
To let me know you feel the same.

One man I seek with perfect symmetry,
One man whose sword is greater than my own,
Who can with just one stroke give unto me
A fear in life that I have never known.
I have wandered without cause from field to field,
A nomad knight afforded by a purse,
And still in battle I am yet to yield
To better men that they may end this curse.

She kissed me ever so tenderly
Upon the lips then said to me,
Last night before I went to sleep
I thought I heard the angels weep.
Not one, but many choral moans
Of beings other than our own
Reverberated around the room,
Yet somehow lost within the gloom.
I could not see them but I knew
Their hearts were broken, split in two,
And why they cried I cannot say,
They simply cried till break of day.
And then no more,
No more was lent,
Their sobbing ceased and quickly went.
I wonder if tonight shall bring
That same angelic lamenting?

The people bore their leader home,

His body now an empty shell,

A clotted mess of blood and loam

From off the field on which he fell.



The day was won but at a cost

That countered victory and reward,

A mighty warrior chieftain lost,

Slain by the stroke of a swinging sword.



Raised up upon his shield of oak

With leather straps and a silver boss,

His corpse draped over with a cloak

To hide the object of their loss.



Those battle scarred and weary few

Processed their sorrow shoulder high,

A sombre column two by two

Beneath a fading twilight sky.



With heavy hearts and heavier feet

They traversed over open ground,

Through swathes of gently swaying wheat

To where their village could be found.



And there amidst those mud daubed walls

Formed into houses round and thatched,

They entered to the anguished calls

Of women as their children watched.



The cries of both the young and old

Rang out as one despairing chime,

To see their man once brave and bold

Cut down too soon before his time.



While dropping down onto her knees,

The weight of grief too much to bear,

The chieftain's love in the night breeze

Knelt silent with a vacant stare.

I met her going to the fair,
Upon a country road,
A bow was tied about her hair
Which to her shoulders flowed.
The spark of youth shone in her eyes
In pools of emerald green,
Her body was of average size
Yet pretty to be seen.
The whitest dress I ever saw
Swept lightly about her feet,
And around her neck a rabbits claw
Clung in the summer heat.
She smiled thinly, bowed her head
And curtsied with true grace,
And then with timid words she said
"My lord what is this place?"
"The road to Danbury Fair," said I,
"And yonder to the coast,
Please walk with me a by and by
And I shall prove my boast."
A quarter mile, a half-a-mile,
My recollection fails,
We strolled in silent trance like style
All through the sun stroked dales.
Until upon a certain spot
No different than the rest,
The atmosphere that once was hot
Blew with a chilling zest.
Then suddenly the sky grew dim
As sun and light withdrew,
And darkness conquered every limb
Above us that was blue.
The woman gave a startled cry
And fell onto her knees,
"Right here is where I cut the tie
With man's mortalities.
My soul will never rest in peace
But always I shall be
A spirit with an earthly lease
Now and eternally."
A pounding heart betrayed my fear
At this unnatural sight,
But paralysed I could not steer
Myself away in flight.
Instead I watched with heavy breath,
This other worldly power
Tell of her own untimely death
Which cut her youthful flower.
A tale of highway treachery,
So long ago it seems,
Resulted in her pedigree
Dissolved from living themes.
And now with woeful discontent
She grieves her swift demise,
By stirring up the firmament
Over where her body lies.
Though boldness purged my nervous root,
My daring came too late,
The questions posed in minds pursuit
Never formed into debate.
For soon the apparition waned
And vanished from my view,
The clouds dispersed, the sun regained
Its former vibrant hue.
And me, my ordeal done at last,
I stood with nought to say,
A victim of a tragic past
That haunts the Danbury Way.

O gentle night, lend me your grace,
The hour is late and I must rest,
Give up my mortal earthly place
And take the unknown journey west.

Mourn not our parting, shed no tears,
All things are fated not to last,
I lived a full life all these years,
Remember this when I have passed.

The longest dark awaits me now,
The deepest sleep I e'er shall take,
One exhaled breath my final bow,
And then this life I will forsake.

The frosted cloak of winter’s chill
Is now retreating over hill,
And through the valley and the town
Enrobed in springtime’s golden gown.


The rolling pasture once unseen
By snow is now a verdant green
With yellow flecks to make you smile
Of primrose blooms and chamomile.


And cottage gardens too delight
With sprightly sparrows taking flight
From overhanging, untrimmed thatch
And nests where eggs await to hatch.


And all around the air’s alive
With scents and insects from their hive
That perch on flowers not their best,
Still drowsy from a well earned rest.

The last ship set sail after midnight
I watched as it drifted from view,
Lost dreams silhouetted in moonlight,
Crushed hopes of a life spent with you.

The wind billowed canvas bears westward,
The rudder steers steady and true,
Far o'er the sea ever onward,
How I longed for our sweet rendezvous.

Just a speck on the distant horizon
Carrying heartache from bow to the stern,
I missed the last ship after midnight,
A ship that shall never return.

I saw her standing by my bed,
She woke me from my fitful sleep,
I felt her stroke my fevered head,
A touch that made my chilled flesh creep.

My confused brain could not discern
Her nature by the candle glow,
Which gave her form an eerie turn
Of flickering gold from head to toe.

A smell like mould and musty books
Hung heavy on the night-time air,
As two red eyes cast soulless looks
That caught me in their sinister stare.

Her face was gnarled and lined with age,
Her mouth an open gaping maw,
A twisted terror wrapped in rage
The likes of which I never saw.

She forced one hand onto my lips
To quell the murmurs of a shout,
Then with her others fingertips
Reached down and pinched my candle out.

I thought at first it was a dream,
A figment of a hope starved mind,
When through the darkness scythed a beam
And with it voices warm and kind.


A narrow band of pure white light
Shone down upon my squinting soul,
Illuminating left and right
The human squalor of the hole.


I felt my heart leap in my chest,
A flood of tears streamed down my face,
Too many days I’d been a guest
Trapped in this god forsaken place.


With heavy legs I tried to stand,
My half clothed body stained with blood,
But failing strength forced me to land
Head first into the thick black mud.


I crawled on all fours screaming shrill,
My hellish ordeal almost done,
Please do not end this rescue till
You find my boy, my captor’s son.

There is a place I long to be
Set in a tranquil turquoise sea,
Where frothing waves lap on a shore
Of pure white sand and shells galore.

A villa steeped in old world charm
Peeks out behind a lush green palm
And invites all to come and view
A beachfront joy of endless blue.

And basking in clear cloudless skies
You claim a bliss filled, sun kissed prize
Of golden skin and drinks on ice,
The calling card of paradise.

I know in time this feeling it shall pass.
My pain just like your love will fade and die.
My heart no longer cracked like broken glass.

You promised me forever but alas
You could not keep your vow, I know not why.
I know in time this feeling it shall pass.

Our first kiss was outside upon the grass.
Your lips saw through my lonely soul to spy
A heart no longer cracked like broken glass.

And in an instant love was forged like brass.
Enduring and steadfast, O what a lie.
I know in time this feeling it shall pass.

For now ill will and spite look to surpass
Those tender moments. How I wish that my,
My heart was whole not cracked like broken glass.

And so with words not meaning to harass
I bid you my sweet love one last goodbye.
I know in time this feeling it shall pass,
My heart no longer cracked like broken glass.

I’ve stopped by woods on snowy eves
More times than I can say,
I’ve wandered roads not taken till
I could not find my way.

I’ve apple picked and mended walls
All by a silken tent,
I’ve been acquainted with the night
Till night and dark were spent.

I’ve asked for roses, prayed in spring
For weather hot and searing
So I could sit and read Bob Frost
Within a cabin clearing.

A cold oppressive malice fell
Upon the room as outside roared
A howling gale, a soundtrack to
Three girls beside a Ouija board.

Three little sisters, six, eight, ten,
Up past their bedtime, dead of night.
Sat in a circle bleary eyed,
Their faces washed in candlelight.

The elder sibling's trembling hand
Dropped on the planchette, slowly met
By four more fingers from her kin
Each coated in a film of sweat.

A sharp intake of breath and then
"Are any spirits present here,
We seek a soul we lost too soon
Our now departed mother dear."

One voice turned quickly to a choir
As all three children without pause
Demanded from that rosewood board
A peek through otherworldly doors.

Five minutes passed, so too five more
But still the planchette would not slide,
The youngest child now fighting tears
Her disappointment hard to hide.

When suddenly out of the blue,
A welcome reprieve from the stress,
The planchette ****** and glided left
Up to the spot that spelled out YES.

A loud collective gasp escaped
Their mouths to see that pointer bob,
Then race across the polished wood
To spell out quickly "I AM HOB."

But shock was very soon displaced
By squeals of joy, a sense of pride,
Their beaming smiles a just reward
For contact with the other side.

With hearts now thumping in their chests
A palpitating hope filled throb,
The middle child leaned in and asked
"Who are you please sir, Master Hob?"

A short-lived pause then quick again
In playful fashion quite bizarre,
The planchette skipped across the board
"MY DEAR, I AM THE MORNING STAR.

I AM THE BEARER OF THE TORCH,
THE HERALD OF THE FIERY DAWN,
WHO RISES IN THE EASTERN SKY
AND SHEPHERDS IN THE COMING MORN.

I AM THE CAPTAIN OF THE GATE,
ADMITTING SOULS AT MY COMMAND,
HIS MOST EXALTED OF THE HOST,
I SIT UPON THE LORD'S RIGHT HAND.

YOUR MOTHER, YES, SHE TARRIES HERE
BATHED IN ETERNAL LOVE AND LIGHT,
ALL HEAVEN RICHER FOR HER SOUL,
ALL ANGELS SING HER NAME IN FLIGHT.

IN FACT SHE STANDS BESIDE ME NOW
ENROBED IN GLORY, ILLNESS FREE.
HER ONLY HEARTACHE THREE SMALL BABES
SHE MISSES NOW SO TERRIBLY.

BUT WALLOW NOT IN YOUR DESPAIR
YOUR MOTHER ASKS, THIS IS THE GIST,
GO OVER TO YOUR FATHER'S DESK
AND WITH HIS FLICK KNIFE SLIT YOUR WRISTS.

FOR THEN THE WALLS OF OUR TWO WORLDS
MAY BE DISSOLVED AND ONCE AGAIN,
YOU AND A MOTHER WHO YOU MISS
CAN BE TOGETHER FREE FROM PAIN."

The eldest child removed her hand
Recoiling at the strange request,
A seed of doubt sown in her mind
About their paranormal guest.

"Our mother would not wish us harm
In this life or the one to come,
The soul you claim to represent
Does not sound like our caring mum.

Who are you really, Master Hob?
I sense a spirit spawned in hell
Who never once has roamed those halls
Of heaven where our loved ones dwell."

A violent scratching filled the room
As on the vibrant red veneer
The planchette gouged into the wood
And made a pentagram appear.

"PROVOKE ME NOT TO ANGER, CHILD.
BELIEVE ME WHEN I TELL YOU THIS,
THE ARCANE POWERS I POSSESS
PROJECT BEYOND THE GREAT ABYSS.

I AM THE RIGHTFUL KING OF KINGS,
NOW DO EXACTLY AS I SAY.
RESIST AND BE IN NO DOUBT, CHILD,
I SHALL COMPEL YOU TO OBEY"

The youngest, unafraid, jumped up
Defiance blazing in her eyes.
"We sought the soul of our sweet mum,
Instead we found the prince of lies.

You have no power over us,
We don't believe you, do your worst."
The youngest child began to choke,
"SO BE IT LAST-BORN, YOU DIE FIRST!"