《Murderously Disturbed》 1. Invocation (Double Couplets) Invocation (Double Couplets)
May these bloody blades of poetry Cut the sinews of your sanity; This, oh foolish mortal, is your fate (Should you soldier on ere it''s too late To escape these agonies of fright). Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.But, as you remain outside tonight, Raise your hand and knock upon this door: Perfect! Now knock only twelve times more. Thirteen knocks, and now the door shall ope, * Dashing out the trembling ghost of hope, When the door reveals inside the void Glowing eyes of red that have destroyed Men of moxie. Ah, what have we here? This here child has shaken not in fear, But only wears the smile of grinning death! Now enter, child, and breathe your final breath!
FINISH 2. Lost in the Woods (Ballad) Lost in the Woods (Ballad)
1 The night is full of ghosts tonight, Both ghastly and divine; And all is darkness to my sight, For all these ghosts are mine. My memory''s a haunted house Of former love and cheer, My youthful days of happiness Flooded with human tears. My lot was with the world of boys Of courage, strength and will (And oftentimes in better moods, I''d think they''re with me still). For we were boys of innocence, Heedless of spook or ghost And heedless of the dangerous wood, In which past boys were lost. I will not name these woods or say Wherein these woods may lie, Because this world in which kids play Can make them cry and die. The world of children is a place Of blissful ignorance, And when they vanish, one by one, So goes our innocence. But we were young and spirited In bravery and friendship; We three looked out for each the other As if we shared a kinship. We''d fight off bullies, left and right, And backed each other up; We''d share the workload and the blame If one of us messed up. And so, one day, we did just that¡ª We each stepped up to fight Off Blake, three comrades ''gainst the one Surpassing us in might. We stood as one, a triple threat, Three pairs of eyes and fists To counter all his speed and strength, And yet he still persists. This bully Blake kept up his threats To wring our little necks, Calling us pussy-footed losers, Because we each wore specks. * We three, in turn, kept up our stand And dared him to approach; We said he wasn''t man enough To stand up to a cockroach! We laughed and jeered in all our glee, We three who were but nine; We stood with arms akimbo, glaring, Drawing our battle line. We stood, three musketeers of might, Against the wooded background; We stood, each one of us a knight, Against him in the foreground. Yet we were heedless of his plans (For Blake had evil aims); He raised his fingers to his mouth And whistled¡ªhis friends came Out of the woods behind our backs, Charging us in a flurry Of jeers and threats to wring out necks; We scrambled in a hurry. So Blake''s three friends had scattered us And chased us t''wards the woods; The bully and his friends outnumbered Us, laughing where we''ve stood. We three then hid ourselves behind The cover of the woods; All three of us raged in our hearts And wanted to spill blood. And so we three regrouped and planned Our vengeance in our plight; We planned to make a desperate stand Before we took our flight. We gathered rocks within our hands And charged up to those bastards; We threw our rocks in one great volley Of missiles on those dastards! And so we turned around and fled Into the woods again, Running and running with the dread That Blake would catch us then. We ran and ran t'' escape the fiends We pissed off with our valor; We ran and ran until we heard Our foes'' receding haulers. 2 But in escaping our pursuers, We made a stupid error; Not only did we lose the fiends, We lost our way in terror. The afternoon was waning now Upon the six o''clock, When waning autumn''s colored sunset Heralds the rising nighthawk. Not only have we lost ourselves Within the woods at night, We recognized we have forgotten To bring with us a flashlight! And adding to our helplessness, We each had not a compass; We never thought we''d lose our way When running in our rumpus. ** The shadows of the woods grew long, Surrounding us in gloom; And so we trekked our silent way With ling''ring thoughts of doom.If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. We passed the trek in idle talk To keep our spirits up, Trying to keep our eyes on watch, Should Blake come sprinting up. And while the twilight overhead Darkened our way in shade And shadow, we traversed our way Into the night and prayed. We prayed, turning this way and that, Trying to find our bearings; We walked, holding hands as we went, Keeping us from despairing. The night was full of ghosts that night, Sending shivers up our spines; And all was darkness to the sight, For all these ghosts gave signs¡ª Signs that whisper of evil tidings In the hush of the wood¡ª Signs that prophecy of our dying, One by one, in our blood¡ª Signs in the rustling of each leaf Of threats that hint of death¡ª Signs in the snapping of each twig Of dangers ''tween each breath. The shadows, they creep in and out, Leering at us in the dark And leering past the edge of sight, Waiting on us like a shark¡ª Waiting, waiting, predatory, Hidden in every nook¡ª Awaiting three scared little boys To frighten with one look Into the monster''s silent stare, Into the fiend''s embrace, Into the monster''s dreaded grasp And in its eyeless face. Such were the thoughts that filled our heads As we traversed together; And so we took up our last stand As we consoled each other. We halted on a snapping twig Just up ahead of us, Jolting our hearts to racing beats, Inciting such a fuss That we mistook each other as The monster thus attacking! And so, we scattered in our haste And sent ourselves backtracking Into the woods and lost each other In the panic of pursuit; And so, I ran and ran and ran Until I lost my route! I called my friends and yelled their names, But now I cannot hear them, Since they''re too far to hear my shouts, For I was nowhere near them. For the next hour I called their names, Wanting to hear their voices; But more and more all that returned Were the woods'' eerie noises. My friends and I inside the wood Have lost each other now; So now, enveloped in this gloom, I must escape somehow! 3 Deep through the woods I searched and searched, Turning this way and that way, Trying to gain the path, and yet That path (no matter what way I turned, retraced my steps, or wandered) Revealed no exit out; And all the while this forest dark Grew darker all about. The subtle threats were everywhere In half-heard silences, Lingering here, or here, or there¡ª All dreaded occurrences. The crinkling leaves, the sway of branches, Even my footfalls'' tread, Filled me with awful thoughts of doom At each invisible dread. Because, beyond the veil that hides Our demons from the eye, There lurks the hidden entity Waiting for kids to cry. For tears of fear attract the weird Things that go bump at night¡ª For shaking nerves attract the takers That take you out of sight. And so, with such abominations Swimming about my head, I made my blinded way in terror Of walking ''midst the dead. And so I walked and walked and walked, Treading with silent feet, Until I heard a snapping twig, Sending me in retreat. And so I ran and ran and ran, Running in all my haste To ''scape the faceless, nameless fiend; My efforts proved a waste. I tripped and fell and kept on falling, Falling an endless drop Down, down into the depths of hell, Until I came to stop, Landing upon the bones of teens And children in these woods, Ripping my clothes upon sharp fragments, Staining the bones with blood. Now bleeding from an open wound, I cupped my arm in pain, For drops of darkened blood bled through, Soaking the grounds like rain. With tears erupting from my eyes, I mumbled out my sobs And curses, wishing I''m at home; And when the pulsing throbs Of blood have lessened in their flow, I looked about and viewed The bones of all the children there; And so my sobs renewed. I sobbed and sobbed and cried and cried, And in my tears I feel The warm embrace of faceless death, As to and fro I reel Between the worlds of life and death, A baby in the cradle; The ghastly vision disappears; Death wraps me in a swaddle. *** My vision blurs from dim to black, Black as an airless coffin; And then I see the face of death, Whose features ''gin to soften. And when I gain my vision back, I see her comely face; Death has a woman''s handsome looks Without a single trace Of decomposing flesh and bone, A worthy face to die for; And then she bends to kiss my forehead, Although I know not wherefore. **** But when she ventures towards my mouth To give the kiss of death, I close my eyes in ecstasy, Waiting with bated breath. And as her luscious lips touch mine, Just at the peak of pleasure, My world turns black and all is nil; I lose my greatest treasure. 4 I woke up in the hospital, My parents at my side; They both rejoiced to see me wake, Relieved I have not died. Yet when I saw the parents of My two friends still in tears, Instinctively I sensed their horrors Curdle my blood with fears. I then inquired about my friends, Asking if they were found; My friends'' sad parents looked at me And said they''re not around. They said, breaking it to me gently, The searching party''s still Searching for them inside the woods; Their whereabouts are nil. And so I sobbed and cried and cried; I knew what had occurred; That fiendish lady of the woods Has taken them; no word Of their true whereabouts have surfaced, Since I was found alive; It''s haunted me forever since: Oh, why did I survive? This world can be an evil place, Filled with the stuff of nightmares; And sometimes when I close my eyes To sleep, I''d feel the hairs Behind my neck stand up on end; I know with every breath I take that woman''s waiting still To give her kiss of death. The night was full of ghosts that night, Both ghastly and divine; And all''s still darkness to my sight, For all these ghosts are mine.
FINISH 3. The Smiling Man (Villanelle) 3. The Smiling Man (Villanelle)
"It''s all inside my head. It''s just a dream," He keeps repeating to himself this way, "A dream that stirs the mind and ends in screams!" Because as day succumbs to night, the stream Of thoughts that floods his mind grow worse: ''It''s all inside my head. It''s just a dream . . .'' As day elapses into night, it seems The world transforms into a world perverse: ''A dream that stirs the mind and ends in screams . . .'' And high above his head, the moon''s great gleam Illuminates the haunted woods around him: "It''s all inside my head. It''s just a dream . . ." He follows close the wooded path; th'' extremes Of friendly hope and dismal fear surround him: ''A dream that stirs the mind and ends in screams . . .'' And lo! Ahead with windows all agleam, There stands a friendly house with burning hearth: ''It''s all inside my head. It''s just a dream . . .'' Indeed, it''s no mirage, as it first seems, And yet he could not shake his doubtful mirth: ''A dream that stirs the mind and ends in screams . . .'' For in his mind he heeds the Brothers Grimm, * Hansel and Gretel''s meeting with the witch: ''It''s all inside my head. It''s just a dream . . .'' Perhaps there lives a crone of evil whims, Perhaps the stash of some successful snitch: ''A dream that stirs the mind and ends in screams . . .'' Yet thinking of such thoughts so vile and grim Cannot find him a better place to stay in: ''It''s all inside my head. It''s just a dream . . .'' And so he steps up to the house and skims The windows¡ªburning hearth and bed to lay in: ''A dream that stirs the mind and ends in screams . . .'' It is a comfort, this, to rest per diem ** Within the cozy folds of soothing sheets: "It''s all inside my head. It''s just a dream." And so into the bedroom cabin, streams Of ghosts dissolve before his eyes¡ªretreats: "A dream that stirs the mind and ends in screams." And in retreating, ghosts begin to seem Less real upon the threshold of the door: "It''s all inside my head. It''s just a dream." He stands upon the threshold, thinking, deems The place all safe to sleep in: "Nevermore "A dream that stirs the mind and ends in screams." He shuts the door behind in good esteem, Slips off his shoes and socks, so he can sleep: "It''s all inside my head. It''s just a dream." He knows, where naught but pleasant feeling teems Inside his head: "Indeed, I will not weep "A dream that stirs the mind and ends in screams." And so all''s well; he thinks the meme *** That haunts his thoughts is past forevermore: "It''s all inside my head. It''s just a dream. "No ghoul or ghost will haunt my dreams," he beams, Creeps in the sheets, repeating: "Nevermore "A dream that stirs the mind and ends in screams." He drifts into the Land of Nod, agleam If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. With many wonders strange and manifold: ''It''s all inside my head. It''s just a dream . . .'' And here within the Land of Nod, he seems To tread through footless halls of drafty cold: ''A dream that stirs the mind and ends in screams . . .'' He enters through a dark and spectral weem **** With sparkling streams on either side aglow: ''It''s all inside my head. It''s just a dream . . .'' But in their glowing depth they hide, it seems, A thousand waiting creatures down below: ''A dream that stirs the mind and ends in screams . . .'' And looking either way, the chthonic gleam ***** Of light throws moving shadows ''gainst the walls: ''It''s all inside my head. It''s just a dream . . .'' And yet the dream is now a nightmare, themes Of ghastly visions filling him with palls: ''A dream that stirs the mind and ends in screams . . .'' He scurries off, running beside each stream, Along the middle path to God knows where: ''It''s all inside my head. It''s just a dream . . .'' For in his heart and in his wits, he fleams ****** Whatever hidden creature''s coming near: ''A dream that stirs the mind and ends in screams . . .'' And so he rushes, stopping short a scream That threatens to reveal himself a pray: ''It''s all inside my head. It''s just a dream . . .'' No sooner has he done so, down both streams The footfalls of some creature come his way: ''A dream that stirs the mind and ends in screams . . .'' He stops and looks about, downstream, upstream, Repeating to himself his fearful creed: "It''s all inside my head. It''s just a dream!" He now recites in prayer the pendant rhemes, ******* Gripping the pendant till his fingers bleed: "A dream that stirs the mind won''t end in screams!" And so he prays, fighting the urge to fleam To God knows where within this tunnel cursed: "It''s all inside my head. It''s just a dream!" On trembling feet, he struggles on th'' extremes Of fleaming by the streams upon the worst: "A dream that stirs the mind won''t end in screams!" What''s this? O''er there beyond the spectral gleam, What specter loiters there within his sight? "It''s all inside my head. It''s just a dream." It''s just an ordinary man, it seems; By God, these shadows give him such a fright: "A dream that stirs the mind won''t end in screams." But on a closer look, the man does seem A little odd, his face all in a smile: "It''s all inside my head. It''s just a dream." The Smiling Man, he says, as one who beams A vicious grin, so creepy, gaunt and vile: "A dream that stirs the mind will end in screams!" "By God, who are you?" says he. "What''s your scheme?" The Smiling Man, still smiling, only says, "It''s all inside your head. It''s just a dream . . ." He says, "Your vicious smile''s not what it seems. Again, who are you? Damn your vile displays!" "A dream that stirs the mind will end in screams!" The Smiling Man continues with his theme, Now walking forward with a hint of menace: "It''s all inside your head. It''s just a dream . . ." The Smiling Man approaches through the gleams, Repeating to the nth degree his premise: "A dream that stirs the mind will end in screams!" Our hero backs away, wanting to scream; But now he fleams the other way, repeating: "It''s all inside my head! It''s just a dream!" And while our hero fleams, the ghastly themes Of Smiling Man now echoes up, completing: "A dream that stirs the mind will end in screams!" And so the chase begins ''tween either stream Upon the middle path, the mouse and Cat: "It''s all inside your head. It''s just a dream . . ." Our hero ''gins to tire upon th'' extremes Of fleaming for his life: "By God, what''s that?" "A dream that stirs the mind and ends in screams!" And to his horror, at the far extreme, A wall blocks up the path: "This cannot be! It''s all inside my head! It''s just a dream!" And dream it is, but proves the worst of dreams, A dream that shatters hopes and makes him pee: "A dream that stirs the mind will end in screams!" He turns around and sees the Smiling dream Increasing speed, approaching ever closer: "It''s all inside my head! It''s just a dream!" Such are his final words before he screams, As Smiling Man now shreds him . . . with the closer: "A dream that stirs the mind will end in screams!" So ends this heinous tale. It''s bloody theme Evaporates upon the break of day: "It''s all inside your heads. It''s just a dream, A dream that stirs the mind and ends in screams!"
FINISH 4. A Stalkers Serenade (French Cinquain) 4. A Stalker''s Serenade (French Cinquain)
1 Outside the Meadows full of life, Beyond the fringe of Persian Zan * Where passions end in pain and strife, There lies a ghostly like where none Who go there have returned by dawn. It is a nameless lake; it''s river Cannot be seen by living eyes, Nor can the prayers of faith deliver The dead out of its banks where sighs Of living resignation dies. Upon these shores my Therza wakes After a slumber, deep and long; Her body''s stiff, her head still aches, The remnants of her dreams still strong: Her slumbers tell her nothing''s wrong. She looks about and wonders wherefore She ''wakens here outside her palace Bedroom where she nightly sleeps; therefore, She picks herself up off the callous Gemstones that form a shore of balas. ** Ah, how the jewel-encrusted shore Sparkles beneath a moon of moons, Brighter than she ever saw before! She loses breath and nearly swoons Over the beauties of such boons. But there''s a cold sterility Hiding within these gleaming shores, For in this charming moon-kissed sea Lies hidden creatures whose great roars Are whispered of in countless folklores. But heedless of these rumored threats That sleep beneath the glassy sheen, She says, "Where are my lovely sunsets? Where are the founts to cool my spleen? Where am I now? What does this mean?" And so she wondered for a while Over the mystery before her, And all the while, she eyes the isle That neither beckons, nor ignores her, Until its aspect ''gins to bore her. She flicks her eyes around the scene, Observing all she could perceive; Beyond the isle, the emerald green Of endless leagues of grass would leave Her silent, ere she ''gins to grieve. Throughout this endless emerald field, Stretching beyond the edge of sight Where night''s dark curtain will not yield To the moon''s radiant beams of light; Such is the strangeness of tonight! Fighting the tears, she soldiers out Beyond the gem-encrusted shore, Keeping her fragile wits about Her, trying to find the exit door And fearing to find out what''s in store. Onward she walks the pathless field Where never walks a living soul, Trying to find the door concealed; Minutes elapse to hours, and whole Miles pass by without reaching her goal. After she treks for many hours, She then looks back; there lies the lake So far away the night devours It in a mist-filed robe of black; She says, "How long will this search take?"The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. She turns her eyes across the wide Emerald sea of glistening grass, But as she does, she''s back inside The confines of the lake. "Alas!" She says. "Wherefore can''t I go pass?" And so she sinks upon the balas Shore, there to weep her miseries, Because some devilry or malice Ordains to keep her; if she flees Again, God knows what else would tease Her with the cruelty of this game! And so she weeps and weeps and weeps, Weeping with bitter ruth and blame, Quaking her heart with sudden leaps Of hope and rage wherein there creeps The sharpest stabs of melancholy! Now all is lost; her soul''s in tatters; She knows not what is vile or holy; Her nervous courage cracks, then shatters; Hope of escape no longer matters. No longer matters if she lives Or dies upon this curs¨¨d spot, On which she finds herself! Who gives A damn how far she''s ever got, Where here upon these gems is her lot? And so, she stews in miseries, Thinking of how to end her life, Thinking on horrid revelries, Wishing she had with her a knife To end the struggles of her strife. But even misters can fade; She wipes her eyes and spies the balas Stones that now glint as if they''re made To lure her eyes; she thinks of Alice *** From Carroll''s books inside her palace. And struck with wonder at the gems, She picks one up and then espies it, Saying, "If you were me and gems Were maidens, how would you despise it If I''m to wear you?" Here she tries it About her dainty fingers small, Pretending it is fastened on A wedding ring whilst at a ball; But in pretending, there beams one Shining the shine of mischief fun. She spies the glint, and up she goes To pick it up and try it on; But when she picks it up, there glows Another brighter piece of fun; She goes on picking, one by one . . . Until with fistfuls in her pockets, Until she''s overweighed with stones, She halts amidst her growing stock; it''s Only now she notices the bones, The shifting gems, the hideous moans. She drops the gems and screams in fright, Ready to turn and sprint away! "Stay!" she hears a voice ring through the night; She turns around. What could she say To spite the sight that bids her stay? For there doth stand a handsome prince, Prince of the realm she''s stranded in; It''s just enough to make her wince In shame upon her green-eyed sin To steal the gems she cannot win. His eyes, they blaze in foul contempt; His handsome face bestirs the soul; She cannot move or feign attempt To free herself from his control¡ª So strong''s his gaze, so stern and whole. For in those eyes stir all the fires Of Hell t'' entrance her heart of hearts, Her fount of lust and cruel desires; So caught up in such stinging smarts, She backs away in fright and starts To lose her senses in her screams, Only to faint into a swoon That sends her to her land of dreams, Where she will die on this full moon Inside her palace very soon. 2 And so I wait and dread the hour That will ere long spell out her doom: My darling Therza, sweetest flower, I''d rather stay here in your room And make this place our sacred tomb! And so upon the hour of death, I shut the doors and linger here; And at my Therza''s final breath, I know my death draws ever near: I''ll meet you soon, dear¡ªnever fear! I spy the dagger, pick it up, And place the point upon my breast; Thrusting it home, I quaff the cup Of suicide, the final test, Then drift into eternal rest. And so I follow you in death¡ª Heaven or Hell, it matters not; No fear of death or loss of breath Will separate our destined lot In bliss, where else is dust and rot.
FINISH 5. Twisted Love Story (American Cinquain) 5. Twisted Love Story (American Cinquain)
Prologue [Spirit] The rites Must now begin. The Sleeper gathers round The instruments he must perform In trance. The knife Is held. The blade''s Sharp edge is used to cut Each finger on both hands, so they Bleed through. The words Are set in blood Upon the paper with The name and date of his lost love On it. In deep Dark trance, he sets The candle on the floor, Then kneels, then holds the unlit match And strikes. So done, He holds the match. The candle flickers up Into a flame. The message starts To burn. Before The flame dies down, The Sleeper goes to bed, So that he can complete the rite In sleep. So now He drifts to sleep And dreams he is inside His bedroom, where his practiced words Invoke: [Sleeper] "I now Invoke your aid To find my love and shed My tears of mirth and grief for her Sweet smile. "Spirit, I greet the world Of terror, shock and fright To meet my long-departed love¡ª Awake!" And yet, When I now ope * My eyes to see my room, I''m still within this dreaming state Of fear. For all Is mist and fog Inside this bedroom dim, Which just an hour ago was filled With joy. Just now, My world enfolds Itself to sleep and leaves This room to things invisible To sight. Such is The state in which I now take up my knife To still the beatings of my heart With blood. Beyond The mind, a dark And footless gate appears And opens wide its yawning mouth¡ª The void. Vast are The barren plains That dwell there, vaster still The inner depths that hold the realms Within. "What realm Beyond the spans Of such huge voids exist? What greater span than human thought Is there?" [Spirit] "The dreams Of sleep eclipse The length and breadth of time, Which slows or stops time''s grasp upon Our wills." [Sleeper] "What then Beyond the span Of dreams exceeds such realms? What greater span than human dreams Is there?" [Spirit] "The realm You always dread To enter in, the space Of nightmares where your fears Reside. "Remain Not long within The midnight''s witching hour Of spells and vain conceits of pride And sin. "Stay not Therein upon Your peril at the hour When demons walk the land at three O''clock. "O''erstay ** Not long the hour Of wolves at four o''clock, Lest just before the crack of dawn, You die. "Do not Forget these words, Sleeper. Your life may well Depend upon them, if you find You''re trapped!" 1. Hour of the Witch | 12:00 a.m. [Sleeper] Those last Departing words Send up my spine a chill That robs me of a restful sleep In bed. But then I recognize The hour the spirit chose To warn me of th'' impending doom¡ª At dawn! Damn that Prophetic fiend! In recognizing that I''m still inside the fatal dream, I dread¡ª Dread all The chances I Mistook for folly at The ticking of the fatal clock Of doom¡ª Dread all The tidings of My fate upon these walls, Now stained with blood that spell her name And date¡ª Dread all The sick and dire Imaginings that man And woman share in hate and woe And fear! For just A moment''s time, I dwell upon these thoughts, Until the rustling curtains break Their hold. Here strikes The midnight stroke Upon some unseen clock. The fatal strike resounds and fades To naught. *** No sound But his heartbeats Now interrupt the still And silent room. He then gets out Of bed. Below Me at my feet Lies my own candle snuffed Out, melted down to half its length And mass. Moreo''er, **** I see the pile Of ash that once contained My lover''s name and date in blood. I cry. [Lover] "Cry not, My love, because I''m here upon this hour Of your late summons, where we stand And meet." [Sleeper] "My God, Are you for real? Are you the fated love I lately wed in sacred bond And love?" [Lover] "Look on And know my face And listen to my voice And reach out for my hand to touch And know." [Sleeper] Known are The charms that love Can swell inside the heart. Now struggling thus to keep my feet, I doubt. Decide For me my fate Or what you will, yet when I listen, look and touch her hand, I yield: "You are, Indeed, the one I''ve yearned to hold within My arms once more, if only just In dreams!" [Lover] "Dream on And love me with The passions of your kiss, And may our hearts entwine fore''er ***** In bliss!" [Sleeper] Believe When I recall The glories of her lips, So sweet to taste. My life is now Complete. Compare Such ecstasy In vain, if any eye Should witness such a paragon Of bliss! But now Must come the fall, For her soft sultry lips And honeyed breath decay to lips Of death. Devoured In death''s embrace, I jolt to feel the cranium ****** Imprint its rotten teeth upon My lips. Lest I Lose all my wits, I yank myself away From that impostor, reeling in Disgust. Down deep Inside my soul, I scream in vain, insane To every sacred creed or prayer Or oath. Oh God, Oh God, oh God! I fall upon the ground In agony and shame, debased, Disturbed. Despite All that, I''m sane Enough to see the bones Enfold themselves in flesh and garb¡ª A witch! [Witch] "Why look Upon me so, My love, when I can give You several thousand kisses more, Tonight?" [Sleeper] "Take your Foul lips and jests With you towards that Fiend You call your sire! Be gone, be gone, You wretch!" With all My strength, I take My stand and glare upon This vile impostor in my hate And rage. [Witch] "Revenge Is not a dish Well served in bloody heat, For I prefer mine cold to touch And eat! "Enter My word of foul Delights and drink my cup Of sweet delusions! Feast upon My whims!" With that, The witch advanced, Stalking and leering with The stench and look of death''s Disease Described Upon her face, Turning her nasty looks Into the sweet but false compare Of beauty. "Behold Your lover''s face, Your destiny and fate! Behold in me the deep desires That tug "Those sore And fickle strings About your heart and eyes And loins! Behold the fruitful sweets Of love!" [Sleeper] Looking Upon such vile Deceit, I fled the room, Disgusted by her parody Of health. Here then Begins the vile Pursuit from room to room, Past countless doors and beds Defiled, Doomed to Repeat the chase, Until I should collapse, Exhausted, drained of courage, life And hope. Here now As I collapse, Defeated and distraught, I close my eyes and start to pray In haste, Howe''er Useless it seems To try; and in the midst Of sudden doom now come upon Myself, Many A thought of hands Wrapping around my neck, I wait and wait for such a doom To come Claim my Life, but instead Of bony hands that curl Around my neck, nothing at all Happens. 2. Hour of the Devil | 3:00 a.m. [Sleeper] Here now, After I pause A moment longer, I Now ope my eyes and gaze upon A room Redone With racks of dark Red wine upon the walls For rites and spells of sacrifice And death. Dark is This room with rows And rows of maddening Books, knowledge-bearers, tomes Of lore Lost to The sands of time, Recovered only with The scraps of evil tidings in Grimoires. "Give me The strength to call On you to do my part In this unending round of chance. Awake!" And yet, When I proclaim My worth upon the air, Only a spell of silence greets My words. [Whisperer] "Wishful Invocations Cannot increase the stock Of your unfruitful venture, yet I''ll make "My one Exception for A suitable price made, Depending on what you can give To me." [Sleeper] "My wife, I want my wife Back in my arms again¡ª The real one, not the blasted witch Ere now." [Whisperer] "Noble Is the humble Heart that wants a humble Dream, a wife to love and cherish. That it?" [Sleeper] "It''s that, No more, no less, Just resurrect my wife, And I shall be content, happy And gay." [Whisperer] "Give then Your soul to me, And worship me from now Until the hour upon your last Breath. Deal?" [Sleeper] "Deal." So I take up the Terms, knowing I will have To pay it back with all my soul In death, Doomed to Enter the realm Of outer darkness where The blinding light of Satan hides No sin. So now I wait and wait, Expecting something big To happen, though I know not what It is. It''s like Awaiting some Unnerving boon to spring Upon your heels like a stray dog Of fate. Fear clamps Its jaws around My beating heart and grips Me in suspense as one possessed With death. Deranged Becomes the man Awaiting in the dark The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there. Before the tide of fear can crest And ebb. [Whisperer] "Enter The void in front Of you and trust in me, For through me shall you find surcease From pain. "Perhaps You might obtain The one you''ve longed to hold; You''ll never know until you tread The path, "Passing Into the path Untrodden by the meek, For nothing ventured, nothing gained. Come here." [Sleeper] Here then I tread towards The voided path beyond The fading light of ignorance In fear. For there Beyond the edge Of human sight, there lies An open door into some realm Unknown, Unknown To all except The brave and foolhardy; This door I push aside and walk In steps Subdued Amid the dark And ill-lit corridor Of ominous design and fell Repute. Ready The heart and mind For that which is to come; And so I tread along towards The depths Deep in The gloom and gloom Of eerie walls and floors, Just visible to walk by sight Alone. And then Another door Appears within the dark, Looming ever larger in front Of me. My fears Grow larger still Upon the sight of that Strange door now slightly just ajar, It seems. So thrilled Upon the sight Of it, I turn my head Behind me where I view the bleak Abyss, And when I turn around, I see the door swing in Without the human agency Of sight, Sound or Touch to remain At ease whereon I stand As witness to the movements of A ghost. [Whisperer] "Go hence, And you will find That which you have desired Deep in your breast, down to your core, Your soul!" [Sleeper] Sweet-talk Like this compels Me on to take the chance, And so I push aside the door And see Something That takes my breath Away and leaves me dumb; For there it stands, the lidless tomb In which Words fail To comprehend! My love lies in repose On a glowing bed of roses Glowing, Giving Off fragrances So sweet and clear to smell That all my sense of terror dies At once. Onward I step inside The hallowed crypt and fall Upon one knee in penitence And love. "Let this, My love, be our Last parting on the eve Of our sweet anniversary! So here "Hidden Beyond the sight Of demons, gods and men, I quaff the cup of heaven''s gate ******* And bliss." By now, I rise upon My feet and overlook My lover in repose so deep And pure, Pleasing To look at her Attractive figure and Her handsome face without a trace Of ruin Remaining Upon her skin, So smooth and silken soft; I place my hand upon her cool Mild cheeks, Checking To see if she Is real and still alive; I bend and lean my ear above Her mouth, Measuring The faintest breaths Of life still in her lungs. By God, she lives and sleeps the sleep Of rest! Right then, The door shuts up, Entrapping me inside The fated tomb before I can React! [Whisperer] "Repay The guide his due, Sleeper, and slumber here Forever with your loved one in The crypt!" [Sleeper] "Curse you, You blasted fiend! Open the door or else When I get out of here, I''ll kill You there!" The sounds Of laughing spite Resound within the tomb, Almost compelling me to rage And rave. Right then, Barely before I catch my breath and calm Myself, a spike of terror shocks My heart. Hardly Do I even Comprehend the terror When round I turn to see my love Sit up Under Her own power, Looking at me with the Comprehension of my living Lover. [Lover] "Lest I Am dreaming, where Are am I and who are you? For I am not acquainted with This place." [Sleeper] "Perhaps You do not know The circumstance that brings Me here, but how can you not know This place?" [Lover] "Please, do Not speak in hints And riddles! Where am I And who are you to question me Like this? "This room Is far too dark For me to see beyond This glowing bet of roses red And white. "While you Are there where I Can''t see, come closer that I might perceive the speaker thus: Come here." [Sleeper] Here now, I stand in doubt Upon the threshold of My lover''s summons to come near To her. Here now, I triumph o''er My doubts and close the gap Between myself and my dear love And say, "Sweet love, I came for you To get you out of here, But now we''re trapped, both you and I; We are¡ª" [Lover] "Ah me, It cannot be! For while I live and breath Inside this place of wretchedness, You''re here! [Sleeper] "How can We then escape This place, for we''re entombed Inside and I can''t budge this door To ope." [Lover] "One way I know t'' escape This place of endless rest, And yet it''s fraught with many risks And traps¡ª" [Sleeper] "Tell me What it is, love! I''d rather risk it all Than spend my life inside this place Of doom." Despite A anxious look About her face, she stands Upon the bed of roses bright And says, [Lover] "Since you Will have it thus, I''ll do your will; come here And stand upon this bed with me. I can "(Combined In your embrace) Escape this place of doom, Both you and I, but heed my words Of warning. "When we Escape this place, We''ll be inside the woods Where howling wolves do prowl about To hunt. "Heed me And know that on The hour before the dawn Is the darkest of all the night To hike." [Sleeper] "How do You know the way When such foul menaces Exist upon the path that frees Ourselves?" [Lover] "On this, I only know Too well. Before you came To rescue me, I had escaped This place, "Perhaps By fate or chance¡ª I know not which or why. And then I walked around to find My bearings "By the Moonlit forest, Yet the howling of the Wolves had frightened me back to this Dark place." [Sleeper] "Perhaps With me to act As guide protecting you, We may get out of here alive And well." [Lover] "Will you Then help me through Those horrid woods at night? Can you ward off those monsters with Your might?" [Sleeper] "My strength Is just enough To scare off those that stalk The woods at night; but even then, We must "Make haste If we''re t'' escape This curse beset upon Us both. We''ve little time to fear The rest." Restored To action, she Now beckons me to her; I follow her direction, stand Where she Stands now, Embracing her Close to my bosom''s heart; The glowing bed of roses starts To shine So bright That I could not Bear such a sight for long, And I must squint my eyes to bear It better Before We ''gin to sink Into the cushioned folds. So down and down we sink and sink Until (Unable To bear the sight) I shut my eyes as she And I cling to each other tight, Secure. So long As I have her With me, I''ll go with her To Hell and back again, so come What may! 3. Hour of the Wolf | 4:00 a.m. [Sleeper] Moments Now pass, as we Begin to see ourselves Still whole, still breathing, still Alive. A sigh Upon the wind Now rustles through trees Beneath the moonlight of the night; The trees Take on The aspect of Of watchful eyes hid in The shadows of each twisting branch And bark; Beyond The sounds and sights Of monstrous things, I stare Upon my lover''s handsome face And gain Good heart And courage for The struggles yet to come, For love can lift the dregs of hope To strive. So now We tread our way Into the thick of wood And feel the chill upon the skin And face. "Fear not, My love, for we''ll Get out of this as soon As possible; I''ll try my best To seek "Some way Out of these woods Unharmed by any beast Or monster lurking in our midst Tonight." [Lover] "Thank you For your words of Courage in this fatal Venture through this hostile forest¡ª What''s that?" [Sleeper] Thereat, I hearken to The sound of distant howls Against the silence of the night And say, "Stay low And follow close Behind my treading feet; There''s danger now afoot upon Our trail." Treading So light upon The muffled dirt, we spot A traveled pathway hid within The woods. We breathe A sigh of such Relief upon the sight, Leading towards a safer place, Perhaps People To take us in And get us on our feet; And so we follow on the path And hope¡ª Hope for Some miracle That clears away our fears¡ª Hope for the chance that we will find Our way . . . When to Our weary eyes, We see a cabin on A shallow hillock just above Its base. Before We breathe a sigh Of welcome thoughts and ease, The sound of howling wolves assail The night! Now we Sprint along the Trodden pathway up the Way towards our place of safety, Nearer . . . Nearer And nearer still, We run as we discern The howling wolves now multiply Their numbers. Nearer And nearer still, We hasten up towards The hillock where the cabin sits Alone, And now We hear the pack Of wolves growling at us, And when I look behind to see, I see Several Pairs of glowing Piercing eyes, like demons'' Eyes gaining fast and faster on Our trail. The steady Increase of grunts And growls and prowling feet Grow stronger as we near the hill And cabin, Combining Our fears in one Mad dash against the fate Awaiting just behind our steps As food For wolves With glowing eyes And snarling jaws with teeth, Ready to clamp around our heels! We gain Good time In reaching hill . . . And pathway going up The hill towards the doorknob, turn The handle . . . Hasten Inside and shut The door against the wolves Just in the nick of beating time! Relief Resumes Upon ourselves, As we collapse upon The floor, exhausted with the chase Of fate! "Fear not, My love, for we Have made it out alive And well without an injury! Rejoice! "Rest well Upon that bed Over there where we will Wait out this final hour of night In safety!" [Lover] "Such words Will bring about Your downfall if you let Your guard down! Do remain alert, By God!" [Sleeper] "Good God, Girl, what on earth Has gotten into you? Can you not see that we have just Escaped?" [Lover] "Escaped The fate of death, Indeed we have; but now I must reveal the final truth To you." [Sleeper] "You fright Me, love, indeed You do! What devilry Remains for us to overcome? What pain¡ª" [Lover] "Pray, pray, Be quiet now So that I can divulge The final secret of my woes And fears." [Sleeper] For her I bite my tongue, Awaiting yet more words Of warning or direction from Her lips. [Lover] "Heed me When I now say That I''m no longer what I used to be, that I have changed To something . . . "Something I dare not say To you, because I am Afraid to tell the only man I love." [Sleeper] "Listen, My love, I will Not faint or turn away, Because you are my love, even In death. "Do not Ever doubt me When I say to you that I will always love you¡ªalways Love you!" [Lover] "You do Not understand! A curse now hangs upon Me with its fangs upon my heart And soul!" [Sleeper] She walks Away from me, But still I follow her Towards a shuttered window that Lets enter Enlightened Streaks of moonlight Filter through the shutter; Here she flings and shutter open And says, [Lover] "See me For what I have Become, a monster to All human sight! How can you still Adore . . ." [Sleeper] And now She starts to cry As she transforms into A she-wolf of such monstrous look And size! Such words Can little paint The jolt of horror in My heaving breast, a stern denial Th'' insane Insist Against the cruel Evidence of my sight! I ball my fists, i shut my eyes, And yell, "You monster! Impostor! Fiend! Where have you taken here? By God, if you don''t tell me where She is¡ª" I stop . . . I now can see The reason why she is A she-wolf . . . She went out before, And I . . . I was Not there when she Got bitten by the wolves When she had ventured outside of Her tomb. To think I was not there To safeguard her from harm, And now I view the sad result: I failed, Failed to Protect the one I loved when I chased out The wolves with gun in hand and shot My love, Leaving Her bloodied and Dying within my arms; The wolves have given her new life In death, Despite My vow to her; I look upon my love Now curled into a giant ball, Cowering, Cornered, Afraid of me. I now collapse upon My knees, knowing that I have failed, Crying Cruel tears Of bitter pain As I have never cried, Bearing my tears as penitence For failure. "Fear not, My love, for I Will never hurt a hair Upon your head, nor will I fail You now. "No matter What will happen, I''ll always¡ªalways¡ªlove You as a human or a wolf; So bite . . . "Bring an End upon this Eternal curse of pain, That we may live together as Two wolves." Epilogue [Spirit] What words Of sweet regret Could falsify such love; The she-wolf timidly uncurled And shed Such tears As human eyes Can only shed¡ªregret, Remorse, commiseration in One act, An act Of surrender To the magic hand of One final chance to set things right Once more. Moved to Action, she stood Upon her legs and lunged Upon her kneeling lover, arms Outspread, Offering Himself to her Sharp canines tearing at His flesh; he screams in utter pain And dies, Defying The curse laid on Her curs¨¨d head as she Tears him to pieces, ensuring he Will not Need to Share in her curse; So with her lover dead And free of sin, she breaks out of The window, Where she Attacks those wolves Who gave the curse to her, Killing many wolves but dying Upon Unending Bites to herself, As the wolves begin to Tear her limbs apart, staining her Fur in blood Before The final hour Of night begins to end, Bringing the dawn of a new day To life. Let us Assume those two, The Sleeper and Lover, Are now together in the tomb Of love.
FINISH 6. Hospital of Dreams (Ballad) * 6. Hospital of Dreams (Ballad) *
Prologue
There is a quiet in the mind Beyond the realm of dreams, A hidden place that few can find That cancels out the screams Of children trapped within the clutch Of nightmares manifold, Dulling out their sense of touch, Until they are controlled. These mindless children at the mercy Of analyzing brains, They form a timeless controversy Over their dead remains. ¡ªAlistair
Part 1 So say''s the Grecian patron saint Of all forsaken children; And yet, the story that I spin Comes out of that deep cauldron Where death (and never life) begets The slumbers of the grave, Spinning new nightmares from the darkness, Which makes the sane to rave. It was a hospital of dreams, A psychiatric ward That housed the inmates'' bedlam woes, Wasting away, ignored. It now stands as a testament To inhumanity To fellow human sufferers, Each brick of masonry A concrete witness to the crimes Committed for the science Of saving lives, which are but lies Stuffed down their throats of silence! Yet in my time, there used to be A special section where Children like me would spend their days And nights in constant fear, For we were children left behind, Abandoned to our fates, No mother''s love to soothe our bonds That tie us down like inmates. Our days were spent beneath the scalpels Of cruel experimenters; Our nights were spent in darkened silence, Dreaming of our tormentors That caper past the edge of sight As demons in disguise, Filling our dreams with constant dread Of their inhuman eyes; And as the eldest of these children, Verging on my fifteenth year, The burdens of their agony Rest on my shoulders bare. On such a night, after my trial Was carried out on me, I''m led into the passageway Beyond the agony Of fellow inmates looking out From padded cells at me; I''m tired, can barely walk or keep My balance, even see; I''m but a little walking corpse Treading on weary feet, Treading my way towards confinement In padded walls of concrete. I''m led towards a padded door, Through which I pass myself in A padded soundless cell of peace To ease my mental strife in. The padded door now closes with A sudden muffled bang, Encasing me inside my coffin, Locked with a muffled clang. I lie myself upon the pads Beneath the dimming light Above my head, then close my eyes And dream of dreams tonight. Interlude 1
There is a darkness to the light, Staining the soul in shadows, Where childhood innocence and might Encounter in deep hollows The greatest fear amid all fears, Beating within all hearts; And in the tracks of running tears, Tinged in their clearest parts, Is found the tainting influence Of thoughtful devilry, Accompanied by th'' effluence Of hateful blasphemy. ¡ªAlistair
Part 2 So say''s the Grecian patron saint Of tainted innocence; And now the world of shattered dreams Drives on my penitence. Into the footless depths of darkness, I find myself outside the Old palace of the Borderlands, A palace by the sea Where djinn are said to live and dine * Upon the sacrificial days; An after-haze of smokeless fire Still lingers in the byways Beyond the mirthless gates and walls That still surround the place. It is a world abandoned by An old ethereal race Of men that came before the current Days of our present day; Such were those days of sacrifice, I feel it all the way Down to the marrow of my bones, Wherein all fear resides¡ª Down to the depths of human instinct Where this fearful patient hides¡ª Down to the handle of my blade Where the slash of death provides Me with the courage on my quest To slay tormentors as my test, Whereon their blood decides The fate of all my bedlam mates, Adults and children both. So armed with vorpal blade in hand, ** Ere trekking through this Borderland, I take upon my oath: "Great Alistair, please guide my blade Into the hearts of monsters, Those heartless demons with their scalpels, Those human-faced impostors!" And so I trek into the gates To execute my justice; I''ll show those monsters what it means To double-cross our trust is! The inner palace walls lie still To crumble into dust; The leafless garden trees lie mute Against the seaside thrust Of wind upon the distant banks That whisper of souls lost; Only the distant breaking waves Echo on the rocky crust That forms the beach adjacent to The palace of the djinn. I surge ahead along the path Towards the entrance in The expectation of attack Inside this wooded garden Before I gain the entrance door; Perhaps a hidden guard in One of the hiding places of This garden of the dead Is scouting me within the tress, Filling my thoughts with dread. And yet I keep my courage true Beneath the gibbous moonlight, Advancing with the fate of death Upon my blade of starlight, And as I reach the steps upon The threshold of the door, A score of djinn emerge out of A haze of smokeless vapor; I grip my blade in both my hands And take a ready stance, Preparing on attacking them Before they have a chance! I lunge and flail my blade about To cut them down to size, Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.And yet I only slice the air To my disbelieving eyes; So now they circle ''round about me, Fearless of my attacks, And ere I take another swipe, They bid me to relax. I stay my blade but keep my guard In silence; so they say, "What is the meaning of your presence? What brings your feet this way?" And on their words of inquiry, A darkness overflows My spirit in a spreading pool Of bloody vitriol on those Who torture all my fellow inmates, Experimenting on them; I say, "I''m here to seek revenge On doctors, all of them, Who drug my fellow inmates with The side effect of phlegm!" *** "A pact with us will get it done, If only for a price," They say, and in my heart I know That ''price'' means sacrifice. "What price of sacrifice must I Do, if must I accept?" I say in my defense; they say, "A sacrifice we''ve kept In blood within our dining halls Is all we''ll intercept. "The blood of anyone will do, As long as it is human; But we do favor blood from those Who have a high acumen For the sciences of life and death And everything inhuman." And so I smile a wicked smile That stretches out my lips, Because th'' asylum''s full of those Who love to torture (heaven knows!) Patients with their scalpel tips. "I''ll gladly shed the blood of those Who torture day and night, Sating their twisted torture-binge!" I say, impassioned with revenge. "I''ll kill them all tonight!" So in consenting to their whims, I drift into the darkness, Returning softly to my bed, Revengeful, even heartless. Interlude 2
Into the depths of utter darkness Exists a touch of virtue; Although the world may seem so heartless, It need not ever hurt you. If you can redefine your station And your state of self therein, You''ll find yourself without frustration Over the Hell within, Because the mind''s a battlefield: It takes as well as gives. Be not afraid, nor hide, nor yield To the world''s bloody knives. ¡ªAlistair
Part 3 So say''s the Grecian patron saint Upon this monster-slayer; And so I take upon myself This bladed cross of prayer, And with the backing of the djinn, I wake my soul to action, Projecting out my soul from body In sharp but brief extraction, Leaving my mortal body there Within the cell unmoving, From which I see the silver chord Body and soul still linking. I turn my sights towards the wrongs That beckons to be righted, And with my vorpal blade in hand, I stalk out so excited That I now feel myself to smile At future retributions, Those callous doctors unaware Of their own executions! To help me in this vengeful venture, The djinn lock all the doors That lead to exits to outside, Trapping the staff indoors. I stalk along the corridors And look through every door, Looking about for my tormentors On each and every floor. The first I spot''s an orderly Of elderly appearance; At first I think of killing her For her role''s adherence To carry out the doctors'' orders, But then her disappearance Would cause the guards to call in backup, Endangering my plan, Even when no one can see me With the help of djinn who can Conceal my presence from this earth; Ah well, this aging crone''s not worth The risking of the program. But just as I''m about to pass Her by without her killed, I whirl around with blade in hand, Slicing open her thyroid gland From which blood sprayed and spilled, Staining the walls and floor with gore. I know the actions that I take are kind of twisted, yes; Then again, you know what? Within this awesome killing spree, I do not give a damn! And so I go through corridors, Continuing the program Of splaying guts onto the floors And decorating walls With the flying sprays of blood Within this maze of halls. I slash and cut through orderlies And massacre the guards, Filling this asylum with their screams, Making nightmares out of their worst dreams, Gutting this house of cards. With orderlies and guards now dead, The surge of vengeance grows, Because those evil doctors are The ones that do not have a prayer¡ª The ones I will impose My harshest retributions on Their unrepentant souls; So help me God, so help me djinn, I''ll send them to the ghouls! And so I stalk the whole asylum In search of only doctors, But in my search I cannot find Any of those damn monsters! Then presently I ask the djinn Where all those doctors are, And in return they said to me, "Most of them are very far "Away within their homes tonight, Except for three nearby Hiding inside their office rooms; We''ll kill the ones within their homes, While you kill those close by." And so I stalk the corridors And search in every room, Itching to use my vorpal blade To bring about their doom. The first I come across is but A youth in doctor''s clothes, Checking each patient''s data folder, Perhaps an intern to an older Doctor with more skill (who knows). But young or old, I do not care; I want to make a kill Upon the first of this trifecta, Commencing this revenge-perfecta To get my glory''s fill. And so I sneak in through the door While he has his back turned, Re-shelving all the folders on The back shelf, unconcerned With anybody lurking through The shadows with a mind For murder on my vorpal blade, Stalking closer behind. And so I creep on tiptoed feet, As silent as a phantom, Raising my blade up in the air, Invisible and bantam **** Within my phantom cloak the djinn Enrobed me in tonight, Biding my time to see him flinch And turn around in fright! Flinching he begins to turn around, And now I plunge the blade Right through his fleshy clavicle, From which the blood now sprayed With screams accompanied with groans, Dropping him with his arms splayed! A spreading pool of blood collects Upon the office floor, Filling the air with an iron taste As I stalk out the door. And so I stalk the corridors And search in every room, Itching to use my vorpal blade To bring about more doom. The second one is middle-aged And practiced with a scalpel, Now armed with many scalpels in His pockets¡ªhands as well. But he''s no match for someone he Can''t see or even touch; Nothing he does will make much difference With my blade inside my clutch. And so I tip-toe forward now So phantom-like, unseen, That I become way too excited¡ª So much so it''s obscene! I cackle, and the echo sounds Within the silent hall, Scaring the man to turn his head And nearly take a fall. But as he rallies from his fears, He says in bitter words, "You think you''ll get away with this, Treating us all like herds? You animals deserve to die And jelly up like curds!" Enraged at him, I lash out twice And splatter all his guts Out of his stomach where he stands In shock from painless cuts! The blood and guts now splatter on The floor in his surprise, And now he falls upon his knees With tears upon his eyes, Putting his guts back in his belly As he slowly¡ªslowly¡ªdies . . . He fades away in murmuring Some incoherent words; The pool of blood, now spreading fast, Coagulate like curds. And with the guts now lying there Bringing up such a stink, I say some words upon the air, "I''m faster than you think." And so I stalk the corridors And search in every room, Itching to use my vorpal blade To bring a final doom. The very last I need to kill Takes quite some time to look for, As though the doctor knew his time Was shorter on the first floor. And so I stalked through all the rooms Inside the first floor where I found him on his knees now mourning The young assistant killed there, The youngest doctor I dispatched Before this final nightmare. I walk to him still crying there To end his suffering, Because it enters in my brain That I took everything That matters to him more than life¡ª His son, the young assistant, I killed for his remote connection With his own father''s vile profession, Now dead and nonexistent. But as I walk to him, he looks In my direction with The eyes of someone who can see The ghostly kin and kith. He says with tears within his eyes, "You took my son away! He had no part in all of this!" And so I pause and say, "May God have mercy on your soul, Because I never will." And then I slash across his throat, Making my final kill. So with that final killing stroke, My curse is rectified Upon the blood of bleeding monsters Who by my blade have died. And so I walk back to my cell Wherein I''m slumbering, Glancing upon my fellow inmates I freed from everything That terrified with demon eyes And fooled us with a thousand lies¡ª I did the proper thing! And so I enter in my cell And lay within my body To slumber off the sleep of death, For death I now embody. Epilogue
Become the knife of vengeance laid Upon the sinner''s soul, Because true justice needs a blade That steals back what he stole. For through the blood of sacrifice That purifies the spirit, It balances the fatal price Of those who try to shear it. For you''re the shadow of each dream That brings on sudden death! You are the one that makes them scream Upon their dying breath! ¡ªAlistair

FINISH 7. Suicide Sonnets (Sonnets) 7. Suicide Sonnets (Sonnets)
1 This night''s as black as misery in bloom; Just staying here and waiting out the hours Have crushed the wits of better men; my doom Lies on the edge of fate; what once was ours To keep and cherish now lies in the tomb Of love to hatred turned, freezing the flames Of passion to the ice of scorn and gloom, Adding my name unto the list of names Bereft of friendship, loyalty and love. And so this lonely pilgrimage commences Within these dark and turning ways: above The moon shall guide, below the foul offenses Of countless sinners goad me on I know Not where or wherefore in these hours of woe. 2 * The souls of poets dead and gone do mock This drifting shadow moving slow along The lonely streets, and when I hear them talk, I hear my name in whispers to their song: "Dear Shakespeare''s such a daft, an aging songster, Who writes so sweet the craft of sweet surrender; But little does he know his regal youngster Is simply but a show, a great pretender. Oh when will Shakespeare see that his dear love Is but a falsity he cannot move? Such love can steal his art from realms above And break his weary heart that cannot prove Unto his waning hopes that love is true: Ah! See how much he mopes his pains anew?" 3 * "Dream on, you sad and brooding dreamer, dream And take with you the prooding tears you shed," They say in laughing spite, "and go redeem Them for a single night in someone''s bed. Far better shall you be to steal away And end your woes for free in harmless fun, Than suffer needless pain to rue the day, Forgoing every gain for things undone. For then and only then can you begin To take a happy pen to make you whole; So heed our one advice to heal in sin, That through an act of vice, you''ll save your soul!" What blasphemy is this that makes no sense? Such temporary bliss makes no defense! 4 I wander to and fro this endless night, Alone to find a place within a world Of bitter pain that seems a tragic plight, A pilgrimage with all my hopes unfurled. I look upon the stars as pilgrims did Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. Of old, continuing my wayward path On weary limbs, as helpless as a kid Who''s lost a dearest friend to Fate''s cruel wrath. I think of laying down my shattered self In some dark alley, dying slowly, death Releasing me from love''s corrupting pelf ** With one last exhalation of my breath. But still I live, for graves have not a place For suicides that die in such disgrace. 5 Although I walk the grounds of Hell and sin, With thee I walk the heights of heaven''s bliss; I languish by the places thou hast been, Alone to weep afresh and reminisce. In reminiscing thoughts of thee, I shed An ocean full of sorrow''s deep regret And suffer countless boils of molten lead To pine away so deep a loss in debt. The world of life, a world so full of hoping, Is dead without the strength of friendship''s clasp To hold this breaking heart, and leave me moping So high a cost that death can little grasp: The fount of sweet forgetfulness won''t cure This agony, in which I can''t endure. 6 If I''m to die tonight by chance or by Mine own design, so be it water lined With poison running down my throat or die A thousand deaths too vulgar for the mind, I''d gladly die a thousand deaths in Hell To free myself from this most hellish ache; I''d pay the ransom of a king or sell My very soul to get this grief to shake It''s ghastly clutches off my heart! Oh no! If I just had a heart to get Possession of that organ, I would part Those very clutches off without a sweat! Ah! Such an ache compels me to dismember My ribs and rip it out to quell the ember! 7 Am I at fault to love? How can this love, So dear to me, have eyes of piercing truth That see with eyes of piercing hate, or move This mortal heart to suicidal ruth? What thought or word or deed could justify So sick a love that only death could cure? What cure so strong that Hell should rectify This curs¨¦d swain in death? What nail so pure In Christian blood could strike so strong a stab Of palpitation, that to die is bliss Upon a crucifixion''s splintered slab, That dying death becomes so sweet a kiss? I pray to God Almighty, kill me now, And on my wretch¨¦d soul His balm endow. 8 What eyes hath scorn¨¦d love implanted in My head, that every object offers sweet Surcease from sorrow''s awful bile of sin? What feet are these that lead into the street? When I do look upon a brick, I see My brains and blood upon its cornered edge, And looking on this quill, I must agree ''T would better suit to ink my bloody pledge Upon the living parchment on my neck; And looking on a horse''s reigns, I reckon Of strangulation''s medicine to break My curs¨¦d neck and drag my corpse, which beckon The beasts of earth to feed upon each shred, Because without thy friendship, I am dead!
FINISH 8. The Unnamable One (Triquatrain) 8. The Unnamable One (Triquatrain)
1 We still talk of the days when the blighted one stays At the house of the fiends in the air; But please whisper those words, so that not even birds Will heed us in our tale¡ªso beware! It was on a sad morrow, our hearts filled with sorrow For the death of our beautiful queen; So we donned on our armor, each noble and each farmer, To make haste to the place where she''d been. For once she was fair; now rests with a prayer That she holds on her lips in her silence; For once we were strong, so bold and so young, Until she was taken with such violence That she died in her struggles to give birth and her knuckles Had become so clenched-up and so white; And right there she expired on her bedside so tired, So worn out in her birth-pains that night. And the heir that she bore struck a pall in the core Of all those in attendance with fright; So we took the small devil and committed the evil That still stalks us with fear in the night. For the name that the queen had given on the scene Of her struggle and screaming and death Has become a bad word that only was heard In the curses of her dying last breath: "May the pains that I bear drift up to the air! May the face of this babe disappear! I would rather be dead than bear up the head Of the Devil''s own son over here!" And for those who have heard our queen utter such words, We will take to our graves when we die; For we fear that unnamable and horribly damnable Sion of the queen''s frightened eye. For the baby was evil, a son of the devil, With the eyes of a demon''s so black And the body of an imp whose limbs were so limp That he barely could move on his back. So frightened we were at the sight of it there That we took it and buried it alive; This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.And the screams of despair were the stuff of nightmares As it struggled to cry and survive. But we dared not to bash it with shovels or lash it With ropes to obstruct it''s foul screams, For we feared that to draw the baby''s blood raw On the dirt would then haunt us in dreams. And since then we have tried to forget and to hide All the horrors that we have all seen; And since then we still live and try to forgive Our most heinous wrongdoing of our queen. 2 Now it''s been twenty years, and the tracks of our tears Are but memories long-buried in toil; So we thought we were free from the hideous memory Of the baby deformed as a gargoyle. But in the twentieth year since the fading of the fear, There arose a depression of sadness, Which took over the township in a panic so severe That the township descended into madness. For the specter of the baby that had killed their fair lady, Their lost queen, has returned to on the town; And the ones that remember have rekindled the slow ember Of those fearful old days in their breakdown. For the specter will prey on the youth where they stay; They are dying right before the old eyes Of those cursed to remember the killing of one member Who should have lived to survive his first cries. But this world is so cruel, and every soul is a fool To believe in the goodness of adults; And so the specter will gain from the small ones that remain By entering their nightmares with results Too hideous to mistake for a nightmare so fake That adults will still refuse to believe; But deep in their hearts, they will shiver in all parts For the horrors that they will receive. For it comes in the night just outside of their sight When the children will breathe out their last; And when that day shall come, they will all be struck dumb As they find out their judgement has passed. For where children stay, so the blighted one will sway All the children to ascend to the air, Where he takes them away full of laughter so gay, While the adults on their knees sink in prayer. But their prayers go unanswered, and their hopes will be shattered, As slowly one-by-one they die out; And their words as they die will fade out as a sigh Upon the alter of repentance that cries out: "And so we have sinned and are now left behind To die out in this plague of slow days; And so we that remain must all answer for the slain, The cause of our dying in this craze!" And now we that persist in this maddening mist Of remembrances ere we shall depart Are now cursed to remember in quieted whisper Of the days when the calamities start. So we still talk of the days when the blighted one stays At the house of the fiends in the air; But please whisper those words, so that not even birds Will heed us in our tale¡ªso beware!
FINISH 9. H. P. Lovecrafts Dream (Acrostic) 9. H. P. Lovecraft''s Dream (Acrostic)
I have seen the dark universe yawning Where the black planets roll without aim, Where they roll in their horror unheeded, Without knowledge, or lustre, or name. ¨DH. P. Lovecraft, "Nemesis"
1 I know it''s out there, lurking in the darkness, Hiding in tombs of endless night and silence Along dark rivers from forgotten eras; Vast are the realms of outer darkness there, Enveloping this earthly plane we live on. Suppose (should you allow for suppositions) Entire domains and kingdoms of existence Entering through the misty veil of dreams and Nightmares and through the corners of our minds. There lies in distant wastes beyond our dreams Humongous vistas where great Azathoth, Enchanted still to sleep by flutes and drums, Dreams on in muttering such gibberish As no one (still alive or dead) can fathom, Remaining there an Imbecile of All, Knowing of nothing that his mind creates. Under no circumstance shall I tell all, Nor mention all the awful things I saw Inside the fringes of those Halls of Dread. Verily will I say to you that these Enchanted and horrendous things I saw Require a strength of mind to comprehend, Since neophytes like you have gone insane, Endangering their plastic minds as much as Yours. So in mercy to yourself and to All other listeners who hear you speak these Wonders I am to tell, I must reveal Nothing that would endanger both of us; In no way else will I reveal these wonders, Not that these very words fill me with worry: Give me some time to figure out this story. 2 When I was seventeen, I used to see Half-glimpses through the veil of lucid dreams, Entering vast and dim-lit hallways through a Reclusive door I often chanced to find Either by luck or evil circumstance. The halls were dark, half-flooded, doorless yet Had once connected to a stately palace Ere some destruction left it in this state. But as I groped along the corridors, Losing myself along the wandering bowels, A sudden spell of sudden trepidation Creeps through my heart with icy fingers from Kadath that beckons me along this way. Perhaps that pensive place of eldritch lore, Long-fabled in hushed tones, attracts and leads Astray unfortunates like me to other Nebulous realms too wide and strange to grasp. Entering yet another unknown part of Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.The winding halls, I find a row of doors Standing on either side against the walls. Rows upon rows of lighted doors that stretch Onwards into the shadows, all of them Leaving a subtle chill of doubt within the Lake of my heart. So past these ghastly doors I Walk on in search of that one door that only I can open with the only key I have, Tucked away in my pocket as I tread. Here then I walk and walk and walk in haste, Only to spare the briefest looks behind, Unsure if something''s there lurking in darkness, There beyond the shadow, past the wall of sight. Another chill runs up my weary spine, and I now run with all the haste of coming doom, Making my way along this horrid tomb! 3 What chthonic blasphemies pursue my steps * Here in these flooded corridors of ruin? Each stab pulsating through my weary heart Reveals entire denominations of Exquisite terrors ravaging my soul. There''s something in the human soul, a candle Haunting the sepulchers that form our bodies. Enter a place of darkness, there you''ll find Yourself the moving target of the ghouls Roaming the halls of human fear wherein Only those brave or foolish wanderers, Led on by some fixation, find themselves. Letting these thoughts subside, I recollect In my studies on the ancient Occident ** Nothing of worth, except perhaps the fact That in the smaller hours of morning, I Have come across these hallways in my studies. Even the briefest episodes have left In the lake of my heart the slightest of Ripples as though some foreign entity Has come to wade within the fearful waters. Over the slosh of wading legs, a whisper Resounds before me far into the darkness, Repeating notes in dissonant and eldritch Overtures that madden out my senses, Repeating like a ghostly gramophone. Uncanny are the terrors of the heart; Noxious are all the fumes of pungent waters; Hideous are the sounds that haunt the blind; Erratic are the whims of the looming fate; Exquisite are the stabs of sudden panic Drowning the heart and mind with fearful things; Eerie is this dizzy atmosphere of doom; Damned are the souls entrapped inside this tomb! 4 Where is the door that leads outside to safety? I could not fathom, though I wade and plod Through countless gallons of stagnating water; How endless seem the rows of doors unopened, Opening to horrendous options all! Under the spell of this anticipation, There comes the sudden stab of awful doubt Keeping my wading strides from moving on. Neither moving nor retreating, imagine Out of the darkness some great bulk of flesh Wheezing through breathing holes of mucus-slime, Letting out the noxious fumes of wet decay. Enveloped in the stench, I wheel about Determining to flee the horrid thing. Getting a good head start, I flee the scene, Exciting that foul-smelling thing awake! Onward I run in haste and hear its rasp and Roar, almost metallic in intensity. Let God expunge the horrors of my flight! Under the strain of wading through the water, Something foul and sticky wraps its length around The middle of my waste and has me Ripped apart, my guts spilled on the water where Echo my screams, before I woke up screaming. Only God knows how I escaped its grasp, Reminding me of every stench I smell. Now that you know the horrors of my dream, Arise and see the bloodstains on my shirt. My guts have yet to heal, and yet I live, Enslaved in death while I remain alive!
FINISH 10. Cave of Giants (Tendi) 10. Cave of Giants (Tendi)
Into the wood and down through hell Begins a journey where they dwell Inside the earth, for legends tell Of giants living underground. For in all legends lies the truth, At least a piece of it, in sooth, Amidst the many lies uncouth Spoken about and spread around. So anyway, my friends and I Went caving in age-old Shanghai Where even locals testify To never go beneath the ground. But we were stupid tourists then; Not listening to Mr. Chen, We ventured to the narrow glen Where they were rumored to be found. We spent all day just getting there And camped outside giants'' lair, The entrance cave beyond compare¡ª So huge it should be more renowned. So overnight we slept inside Our knapsacks in the countryside, Where nighttime silences belied The giants sleeping in the background.Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author. At morning we unpacked our camp Ere going on our daytime scamp Into the darkness with our lamp Lighting our way into the foreground. Through massive halls of stalactite And over floors of stalagmite, We journeyed through the endless night Of the giants'' hidden playground. Deeper and deeper through the cave, We journeyed through the deep concave Surroundings of our living grave, When we all heard a breathing sound. We saw an opening right where We heard the breathing in the air, Peering into the giants'' lair, Feeling our heartbeats'' constant pound. I turned my flashlight on and aimed The beam into the darkness; framed Inside the dark, two eyes inflamed With rage peered out and looked around. We all hightailed our asses then Out of the cavern darkness when We heard the breathing air again, Followed by shaking in the ground. Running and stumbling through the dark, We heard a roar break through the stark Stillness, from which the legends mark The giants'' raging underground. Out of the entrance, we began Our scramble through the narrow span Of glen, until we reached our van And drove away, now airport-bound. We''ll never go back to that place Where giants lurk without a trace Within dark caverns as a race, Waiting there still until they''re found. So when you make your cavern trips, Listen to locals and their tips And warnings from their speaking lips¡ª Sometimes it''s best to turn around.
FINISH 11. Silent Suicide (Ballad) 11. Silent Suicide (Ballad)
For in that sleep of death, what dreams may come. ¡ªWilliam Shakespeare, Hamlet, Act 3: Scene 1
The die is cast; the family unit Is broken into splinters. The only pillars of my strength Now drift apart along the length Of clenching ruthless fingers. The unbreakable vow is shattered And all my strength goes with it; The only thing awaiting me (When everywhere I look to see) Is death and screams within it. This world I see is dead to me, Burnt to a smokeless ember; For no more love and only hate Shall be the ending of my fate, Which no one shall remember.Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions. So in my darkest hours of silence, When everyone is dead, I scratch my name from off the page Of destiny within my rage Of solitary dread. No fate shall follow at my heels And keep me company, Because my world is my inferno, In which my sufferings will earn no Reprieve or set me free. In silent brooding on my fate, I''ll take myself away T'' extinguish out the burning fires, Compelling me in my desires To end my life this day. No longer shall I breathe the air Of living happiness, So long as hatred still exists, So long as foul contempt persists, So long as there''s distress. The air I breathe is rank with hate, With anger, fear, regret, From which I cannot seem to ''scape, Except within a dreaming landscape Free of the looming threat. And so in silence shall I sleep And never rise again; I''ll sleep the endless sleep of death When the long sigh of my last breath Will cut my silver chain. In outer darkness shall I wander In endless dreams tonight, When all my soul is free from pain; The only thing that will remain Is seeking out that light.
FINISH 12. Underneath the Bed (Ballad) * 12. Underneath the Bed (Ballad) *
Why sleeps he not, when others are at rest? ¡ªLord Byron, "Lara"
1 Allison was old enough and Brave enough to calmly hear All the details of the rough and Gruesome things we always fear. Allison was just thirteen, Yet her grandpa had no choice; Something he had not foreseen Forced him to scream out his voice. So he had to talk real low, Making Allison lean forward; ''Gainst all odds, she had to know, So her grandpa said, straightforward, "There''s a presence lurking by Just beyond the wall of sight; It''s enough to make you cry, Yet you must not die of fright! "I must tell this bedtime story That the world can''t figure out, ''Cause it''d faint to hear the gory Details, leaving all in doubt. "Yet the story must be told For this curse to run its course, For the witnesses are old And my voice is getting hoarse. "Listen to me well, my child; You''re the only one who can; It''s a story still defiled By the blood lust of a man." Chills descended on them both, Running up and down their spines. "Promise me your silent oath," Said the dying man, "for mine''s "Dwindling with each breath I take, Thinning out each waning breath; Silence please, for your own sake! Do not stir until my death!" So the girl kept silence then, Giving silent ear to him; So the dying man began, Giving life to something grim, "Long ago when I was young, Younger than you are right now, I involved myself among Friends who took up each a vow, "Such a vow as mortal lips Dare not vow upon fair youth; Yet loose lips can sink all ships When they do not speak the truth. "That is how it all began, Ten of us in one vile pact, Knowing nothing of the man Binding us to his contract! "Yet, at first, it all seemed good, Making all our dreams come true, Duping us to think it would Never need our honest due. "Then one day, I noticed that Herman Graves had disappeared; In his place, a baseball bat Stained with blood had then appeared "In his bedroom on the morning. Both his parents screamed and screamed; When we heard, we sank in mourning; All was never as it seemed! "Then police investigated, All the evidence collected, But their efforts were frustrated; Evidence proved disconnected. "Thus we spent our days in fear Of each rumor going ''round That subdued our former cheer, Haunting every former playground. "When a week elapsed in silence, As we all had just recovered, As we healed in slow reprievance, Two more deaths were then discovered. "Leone Brown and Thomas White Were both discovered dead in bed; All the town was up in fright, All of us now filled with dread! "Both were found in bloody pulps, Bludgeoned both with baseball bats Found beside their beds! What gulps We swallowed down our throats, "I can hardly tell you now; Yet we knew as I still know That the curse set on my brow Must die with me when I shall go. "So police investigated, All the evidence collected, But their efforts were frustrated; Parents, cleared, were now suspected. "Thus we spent our days in fear Of each rumor going ''round That destroyed our former cheer, Haunting us on every ground. "So another week went by When some parents moved away; Three of us then said, ''Goodbye''¡ª Moved away within a day. "Then another week elapsed When I heard upon the news Three more children died¡ªcollapsed¡ª Died as they put on their shoes. "Those three children that departed Were not named within the print, Yet we four remaining started To suspect the subtle hint "That the curse was near-complete; Those three children all were doomed¡ª Morton Alders, John Gould, Pete Reynolds. They now lie entombed! "Doubtless cops investigated, All the evidence collected, But their efforts were frustrated; Everyone was now suspected. "Thus we spent our days in fear Of each rumor going ''round, Making this dread fact so clear¡ª We were next! What fears surround "All of us remaining still, Fearing to take to our beds? We would be its final kill, If we failed to keep our heads. "So another week went by, Staying each of us awake In our beds as night went by, Waiting for us each to break. "We all had our walkie-talkies, Talking to each other still, Keeping us awake with stories That we told to keep us still "From the sleep of certain death. Then one night, a silence crept Through us as we held our breath, Hoping none of us had slept. "Then we heard a cry begin, Then a sudden crack and crunch Of a skull collapsing in, Followed by the horrid munch "Of some monster chewing flesh; We screamed out each others'' names, While the chewing sounded fresh¡ª Screamed we all except for James! "Listening for James to speak, Silence only met our ears; Calling now for James to speak, Silence now confirmed our fears! "Then another crunch and crack Sounded through our walkie-talkies, Followed by a swift attack Cutting off our walkie-talkies! "Screaming out at once, we swore And then learned that Edward died; I then screamed, ''Sh-shut the door!'' Shutting mine, I ran to hide "In the closet claustrophobic, Holding still my walkie-talkie; Then I heard between the static Screams in my own walkie-talkie¡ª "Then I listened for my friend, Eric whom I prayed still lived¡ª Only silence would attend, Leaving me so friend-deprived! "Then a silence lingered there Ere I took another breath, As I waited for my share Of a sure and sudden death. "Footsteps sounded in the hall, Then the jiggling of the knob! Now expecting death to fall, I began to moan and sob . . . "When my parents'' voices came, Asking if I''m doing fine; Fearing it was still the game Of the killer''s ruse malign, "So I screamed and screamed and screamed, And I sobbed and sobbed and sobbed, Fearing it''s a ruse, it seemed, Fainting where I screamed and sobbed. "Waking in the hospital, Finding that my parents cried, I regained myself a little; When I found my friends all died, "I began to cry again For the names of my best friends (James Linnette and Edward Fenn And Eric Dross) who met their ends. "So I cried and cried back then As I still cry ever since; So the danger that you''re in Starts and ends in this offense. "Pray, dear child¡ªoh, do not start; Listen to my last instruction: When I sleep, I shall depart, But I''ll keep you from destruction. "Once you leave my bedroom hence, You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version. Lock your bedroom door and shut Yourself in your closet thence; Wait in there no matter what! "Wait and do not stir a breath, Lest the monster hears you out; Do not weep for my own death, Till the morning clears all doubt. "Then I shall not die in vain, But go knowing you''ll survive; Then shall I be cleansed of pain, When I know that you''re alive. Go now! Leave me to my doom!" Allison ran from the room. 2 Allison had shut her door, Locking it with bated breath, Treading lightly on the floor, Fearing for her grandpa''s death. On the verge of brimming tears, All her soul within her burned; All her pluck had changed to fears; All her courage overturned. Now her stomach flipped and flopped, As her beating heart corrupts her, When pulsation nearly stopped At a thought that interrupts her. Broken though she seemed to be, She began to think about All the strange profundity In her grandpa''s words throughout Such a wild and bloody tale, Ended with an anxious warning To escape a monster''s trail By the gleam of fated morning¡ª Such a tale as storytellers Never tell except in dire Need to tell to kindred fellers, Which impending deaths inspire. So exhaling bated breath, Willing all her tears away, She observed the length and breadth Of the bedroom where she''ll stay, Occupying her attention On her happy memories, Easing all the built-up tension To a semblance of ill ease. Many things now came to focus, Concentrated to appear Like a flame-lit flick''ring locus * Shaded with the cast of fear: Boy-band posters on the walls Posed in faux expressive guise; ** On the dressers, girlhood dolls Sat and looked with sightless eyes; Childhood photos framed in steel Now obtained uncanny aspects, Making all her blood congeal At the sight of such effects; Lampshades threw soft rays of light Only to succumb to shade, Wherein past the edge of sight Grew a ghostly night parade In a shiftless silent march For the conquest of her room; Shade on shade, they grow and lurch To complete her grandpa''s doom! In her heart, poor Allison Began to cry and cry and cry; Something in her was undone, Yearning for her wish to die, So she''d see her grandpa still When he breathed his final breath, Yet her grandpa''s iron will Reached her from the brink of death. Now her grandpa''s ghostly voice Whispered softly in her ear, "Dearest child, I have no choice, For my doom lies ever near." "Grandpa, please don''t go," she said; Then she cried and cried and cried. "Dearest child, when I am dead, Do not sorrow," he replied. Then he waited for her say, But when he heard none, he said, "Allison, you need to stay Here inside your room instead. "Try to move on when I''m gone, Even when your parents fight, For when all is said and done, You''re the one to set things right. "Please, I beg you not to cry, But be strong and free and wise; Dare to live and hope and try To love your parents in your eyes." Allison now wiped her face, Wet with tears upon her cheeks, Sniffling mucus with a trace In her voice that chokes and breaks. "Grandpa, why can''t I go with you?" Allison began to say. Then her grandpa said, "I''m with you¡ª Always will forever stay "Here inside your heart of hearts. Nothing, not my nearing death, Nor the stilling of my parts, Nor the stoppage of my breath, "Will part yourself away from me, For I''ll be inside your heart, There to set your sorrows free When I finally depart." Tears renewed upon her face, Tears like acid tinged with love For her grandpa''s dying grace, Tears that she cannot remove. Ere she spoke her turn, soft sighs Rustled through the trees outside; Instantly she stopped her cries, And her eyes now opened wide. Everything began to get Darker than the outside night, Heralding the subtle threat, Dimming incandescent light. Ceiling lights flicked on and off Right above her trembling head; Shadows drifted, running off From her room towards the deathbed Of her grandpa''s dying room, Where poor Allison can''t go To his rescue from his doom, Thus renewing tears of woe. So she waited for the end, Waiting out his fated death, Waiting as her fears portend On the edge of bated breath, Whisp''ring to the stagnant air The fearful summons of a prayer. 3 While poor Allison awaited, Shadows marched in grim parades To those silent heartbeats fated To expire beneath their shades; Rows and rows of shadow people Flitted through the darkest corners, Preying on th'' unwitting sheeple *** Sleeping unaware of warners'' Warnings to keep vigilance For the danger of their presence¡ª Preying on the insolence Of sleepers in a dreaming trance¡ª Weaving bloody effigies That would taunt them with a hex¡ª Leaving gruesome memories That would haunt their intellects. Yet the dying grandpa kept All his fading wits about him, Poised and ready to accept All their tortures laid about him. Darkness spread throughout his room, Dimming every flick''ring lamp, Veiling it with shades of doom, Suspending him in cold and damp. Silent resignation kept Him from giving into fear, Even as they closer crept, Creeping slowly ever-near. Then his breathing came in gasps, As their fingers ''round his neck Clamped in ever-tighter clasps, Almost till his neck would break! Then he struggled with the strength Of sheer desperation fading, Ere collapsing at full length On the bed, his strength degrading; Then a sinking feeling hovered, Paralyzing first his body; Then his breathing next was smothered Over with the stench of bloody Hands upon his mouth and nose, Till his thoughts grew weak and foggy; Then he lapsed into a doze, Making him forever groggy; Then in all-consuming darkness, Cruel and clutching hands reached in, Ripping out his soul in starkness, Ripping till the pain within Forced a scream of agony From his ghostly lips of pain; Pulls and yanks¡ªa ripping spree¡ª Continued till the silver chain, Tying body to the soul, Glowed within the darkened room; All this pulling took its toll On the soul inside the tomb That had once been living flesh, Now a still and cold cadaver Lying ''neath the sheets as fresh As Death itself was ever-after. Yank and rip and yank and rip¡ª Ah, the horror of it all Makes my beating heart to skip, And my skin to creep and crawl! Every yank increased the pain¡ª Scream and scream and scream and scream! Scream on top of scream did reign Over this ungodly dream! Then the silver chain stretched taught, As their bloody hands still yank. Something in his corpse had caught; Something in him now went blank. Pull and tug and pull and tug¡ª All the tugging in the world Can''t release the stubborn plug, Nor drag it to the Netherworld. Something stronger than the darkness Held them back through all their harshness. 4 All the shadows stopped to wonder What (in Heaven, earth or Hell) Could restrain them from their plunder; What exceeds their ghastly spell? So they stood, still holding on, Pondering about this force; Was it God''s eternal brawn? Was it His eternal source? So they thought, almost aloof, Thinking over this inquiry. Then a certain kind of proof In two blazing eyes of glory Thus appeared beneath the bed, Frightening the shadows off; Something stronger than the dead Lingered there amid the standoff. Then those eyes blinked out of sight, Cutting off the only light source In the darkness of the night; Something capered with the force And the power of a god; Something stirred inside the room, Something strong and something odd, Something stronger than the tomb. All the lamps flicked on and off, Giving off a sultry glow In the darkness; then a quaff **** Of sultry air began to grow. When the lamplight flickered on, There behind the hoary bed Stood the form of Allison! All the craven shadows fled, Fleeing from her spiteful glares, While the other shadows stayed Frozen to their spots with stares Fixed upon her vorpal blade. ***** With her vorpal blade in hand, Raising it above her head, Holding doom at her command, Holding judgment o''er the dead, She swung down with all her might, Blazing out the dark with light! 5 All the shadows now were gone; Grandpa''s room was filled with light, And his curse was now undone; Everything was now set right. Through the window''s curtained lace Westered morning in the east, Giving weary night the chase, Till the waning curse had ceased. Dawn was just about to break Past the dark horizon hues, Rousing sleepers to awake With the early songbirds'' coos. Allison stood silent there In her grandpa''s deathbed room, When she noticed with despair Subtle traces of the doom That had overcast the night With the heavy breath of dread; Now she turned to view the sight Of her grandpa in his bed, Still and shiftless as the dead, Nothing heaving up the sheets With the breathing from his head, Nor the heaving chest with heartbeats Pumping life throughout his body, Nor the semblance of its trace Anywhere that could embody Life within his lifeless face. Tears erupted from her eyes At what Allison had seen; She began to recognize What her grandpa meant to mean When he said these words to her: "You''re the one to set things right." In the chaos and the blur Of her downward swing to smite All the shadows from the room, She had cut the silver chain Chaining her grandpa to his doom, Freeing him from all his pain; When she set her grandpa free, Severing his dying breath, She must face the parting fee That she caused her grandpa''s death! So she dropped her vorpal blade, Which now disappeared from sight, Feeling all the guilt that weighed On her shoulders in her plight. So she cried and cried and cried, Wallowing in all her sorrow, Mourning for the one who died By her hand upon the morrow That he prophesied must happen. Then her grandpa now appeared (Fair and strong and not misshapen By the tortures of the weird Forces of the Shadow Realm), Yet to wane in latter years, Feelings ''gan to overwhelm Allison with renewed tears. "Dearest child," her grandpa said, "Know that you have set me free; Sorrow not that I am dead; Live your life for you and me." As her grandpa fades away In the morning''s coming glow, She had one more thing to say: "I promise." And she made it so. Thus she cried with bitter tears, Cleansing out her weary soul, Cleansing all her ling''ring fears, Till her soul (renewed and whole) ''Gan to look upon the sunrise, Courage gleaming in her eyes.
FINISH 13. T. Parnells Reaper-Friend (Acrostic) 13. T. Parnell''s Reaper-Friend (Acrostic)
''When men my scythe and darts supply, How great a king of fears am I!'' ¨DThomas Parnell, "A Night-Piece on Death"
1 (Death) Where shadows lengthen on the ground, He with the blade will swing it ''round, Engraving on your soul My name; Nothing you do will break My aim! Men of the fight have lost their wits, Entreating Me in crying fits: None will survive when I give chase! Men cry for time in sad disgrace, Yet I am not an entity So turned about so easily! Cry and you cry, yet you won''t shake Your final sentence that I make To send you with My swinging blade Hell-ward bound where all glories fade: Enter that place, and do your time! (Parnell) And so I suffer for my crime, Not just a crime of passion where The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. Death Himself takes me on a dare, Daring me to begin my tale, A harmless crime well-boozed with ale. Remember where we dropped our loads? T'' was on the midnight at the crossroads. So take a load off, Death, my Man! So let me see where you began. Upon my proposition made, Pretending He''s already paid, Perhaps he''s just a little shy. Let it all out, my Man, says I. Yet here, He takes a minute''s pause . . . 2 (Death) How can I even state the cause Over the shifting of my state, When I remember not my fate? Gone are my days of innocence; Regrets are all I have e''er since; Even the thought of it became As weary as it is a shame To be the Reaping hand of God, A blade as sharp as it is flawed. King of regret, that''s all I am; I''m just a dunce, a living sham, Not to be trusted by himself; God''s the One who take all the wealth! Of course, I can''t bring up my case For Him to merely strike my face. For even Job, that blameless man, Entreated God when He began Asking the questions Job can''t answer¨D Reminds me of that no-good cancer, Satan with all his suave and sass! All''s good, until he screws my ass; Man, that''s when I had learned too late! It''s time for you to meet your fate!
FINISH 14. Phantasmagoria (Double Couplets, Sonnets) 14. Phantasmagoria (Double Couplets, Sonnets)
Part 1. Innocence
Last night, with many cares and toils oppress''d Weary, I laid me on a couch to rest¡ª ¡ªEdgar Allen Poe, "Poetry"
1 This world of lies would have outsiders thinking My world of deep reflection''s just a shrinking Of wits into the confines of phantasms, Mere figments of my weird enthusiasms! But these are not the ravings of a madman, Nor are they tricks of some inventive con man, Nor are these lines confabulated rhymes Concealing all the tracks of fancied crimes. Visions there are, although they''re not my own; And lunacy, although it lurks unknown To scientific minds of great invention¡ª Unknown because they give it no attention. These moving shadows do exist, believe me, Although the skeptic''s sure to disbelieve me; Our human eyes are just a pair of lenses, The most restricted of our earthly senses. There''s more beyond the spectrum of apparent Colors depicting all the hues inherent In everything we see inside the veil; Beyond it lies a world of boundless scale. 2 Tonight, with many cares and toils oppressing, I lay me on a couch for decompressing My worries of today and of the morrow¡ª Tonight, no need for trouble till tomorrow. Upon the couch, into the cushions sinking, Methinks I see the lights around me blinking, Blinking for want of electricity, A common want in this accurs¨¨d city! As such, I cannot help but form a smile, As if my state would have me still beguile My misery to shades of odious humor, In which my life lies tangled up in rumor. Within this state, my thoughts would often wander; I''m lying on the couch to rest and ponder, For Sleep''s a woman that I yearn to clasp, Yet oft she slips beyond my mortal grasp. I while the minutes by and close my eyes, Awaiting sleep, my most elusive prize; The minutes pass, the father clock ticks on, Yet time and time again, I only yawn. My world lies in the darkest shades of light, Wherein I spend insomniac hours at night Wondering over ever-lovely you; In you, my thoughts and troubles still renew. I cannot help but think of former days, When you and I would while those summer rays By telling all our deepest darkest stories¡ª By waxing nigh poetic on our glories. I''d fall for all your grand conspiracies Of lurking infamies and enemies; You''d be the persecuted heroine, And I would be the friend you''d shelter in. And after supper in those twilight hours, Or in the midst of summer''s sudden showers, I''d ease your mind with eldritch tales of lore¡ª Stories of goblins, ghosts and ghoulish folklore. Within the well of both our lurking fears, We''d bear our souls in whispers, giving ears To both our glories with our youthful might, You by afternoon, me by the edge of night. We''d share the glorious fight, casting our spells To bar the mundane horrors of our hells, Until that gentle Sleep enfolds us both Within the marriage of her soothing oath. 3 Slowly I ope my eyes and look around; The walls of varnished paneling abound With shades and shadows staining my world in gloom¡ª Staining each glimpse of you inside your tomb. Oh, how I wish to be entombed right there Beside your earthly form, so young and fair; My world of tales are nothing without you, You who would listen, so faithful and true. Oh, how I wish to hear your charming voice, In which my weary heart would then rejoice To hear your sweet conspiracies untold¡ª To be your faithful ear, even when I''m old. I''d fly to you as moths fly t''wards the light Beneath our canopy of stars at night; I''d weave my spell of modern fairy tales, And you would dwell on all the eerie details. To hear your charming voice after many years¡ª That alone shall be the honor of my tears, When I shall hear your eldritch whispers weave Your spell around me ere this life I leave. And so begins the everlasting vigil, In which I play my Dante, you your Vergil, * And I would follow you into the gloaming, Wherein my restless soul''s forever roaming. And so the father clock ticks on and on Towards the endless march to ageless dawn; Go and I shall go, rise and I shall rise, And I shall follow you into the skies. I''ll follow on the whispers of the wind And cherish all the tales you leave behind, Your siren songs of sweet conspiracies Sighing through the zephyrs of my memories. I''ll linger where you lie inside your tomb And dream that deathless wake wherein the gloom Forever lies forgotten on the floor, Long after I escape the spectral door. And when I close upon your sacred shade, Wherein my miseries would slowly fade And disappear into excelsis gloria, ** I''ll linger on your shade''s phantasmagoria! *** 4 And yet the father clock ticks on and on, Dragging me from my thoughts of you whereon I start up off the couch and nearly scream; Ah, curs¨¨d are these fleeting states of dream! Upon that clock I fix a pensive glare, And back upon myself the clock would stare, Stare and only stare with stupid nonchalance¡ª Stare as the crowd would stare in their response. And so I pick myself up off the couch, Feeling my weary mind roll in the pouch That forms the temple of my weary brain; Ah, such unease seems ever my domain. A sudden dizzy spell o''ertakes my poise, Stuffing my ears to bleeding full of noise; I squint my eyes and clench down on my teeth, Till sound and dizzy spell would let me breathe. I waver, my head reeling to and fro, Until the nauseating overflow Subsides and leaves me weary on my feet, Leaving me barely standing in defeat. Ere long I stand, I move my weary steps And pace about until the reeling stops; My world reduces to the phantom throws Of many melancholy shades and shadows. And in between these shades and shadows streak The faintest wisps of light, and every squeak Of floorboard thrills me¡ªfills me with alarm, With countless forms of otherworldly harm. A darkness more than night steals through the room, Enveloping my world within the tomb Of souls adrift on seas of circumstance, Waiting out their judgements for another chance. I hear their voices wafting past my ears, Whispering rumors deeper than my fears; And in the midst of such susurrant voices, **** I move my weary steps and choose my choices. Either to turn my steps t''wards couch and cushion And try to sleep away this vast confusion Of voices crowding up my mind with rumor, Or move my steps ahead in churlish humor. Ah, humor¡ªsuch a damnable emotion; It wears the clothes of levity and motion, But only to deceive its witless wearer Into committing some egregious error. I look behind, beholding still the couch, On which I often in depression slouch My weary body in attempts to sleep, Perchance to dream and in my dreaming weep¡ª Weep for the loss of her eternal shade¡ª Weep for the loss of such a tempting maid¡ª Weep for the loss of her conspiracies¡ª Weep for the loss of such securities. For life is but an empty space around me Without her wondrous intrigues to surround me, And all my eldritch tales lie in suspension Upon the pageless tome of comprehension. 5 Into these thoughts, the father clock ticks on The tune of yet another hour bygone, Breaking the ghastly spell of shade and shadow Like candles breaking through the afterglow. A row of candelabra light the way Into a hall of moving shadow-play, Moving to the flickers of each swaying candle¡ª Ah, such a sight that only few could handle. Into this moving shadow-play I steel My nerves upon the threshold of true zeal, Striking my heels upon the creaking floorboards To scare what ghost or ghoul I come towards. Yet in my heart, the thumping of each pulse Reveals my tenuous courage to be false; A mere pretension stands in place of fear; A breath of doubt makes courage insincere! And yet¡ªby God¡ªI tread on through the gloom Of shifting shadow-play towards my doom! Her memory now follows on my right, Moving in shadows past the edge of sight. She disappears just as I turn my head, Mocking me as cruel immortals mock the dead, But lingers at the corners of my eyes Like phantom shadows lurking in disguise. And so I tread beside this shade of death And breathe her fumes with every fearful breath; My journey now becomes an odious show, Wherein dead tears flood up my eyes with woe, For memories of you still shake my heart, Serving to form the wellspring of my art, Writing these rhymes of blood on parchment dead¡ª Writing these lines to catch the tears I shed. My life is nothing without you to share it, For living''s but a yoke to those who bear it Alone, befriending only moving shadows That linger through their nightmares on their pillows. Into the endless gloom of paths unknown To those who''ve yet to sorrow and bemoan The passage of a love to shades of night, I make my vigil through the flickering light, Losing all sense of time and space between; The fog of memory becomes a screen To lead me on and yet obscure the way, An ever-shifting image of a fey ***** That leads me to the tomb of my lost love¡ª Lost to this world but not the world above. So must I tread, my thoughts a whirling haze, Searching for an exit through this restless craze That whispers through the ancient lips of yore The endless chant of "Never . . . Nevermore!" Such words (and more besides) fill up my skull With memories I cannot hope to quell! A-flood with memories I can''t unclog, What''s this I see beyond the restless fog? A door? Is this a new hallucination? What lies beyond this newest captivation? I tread on closer to it now expecting The door to vanish as I''m now suspecting, And yet it stays there resolute and strong; It never wavers as I walk along. And so I tread towards the door in wonder, Drifting along and seeing it get bigger, My hand now stretching out towards the knob To turn it as my heart begins to throb. I drift and drift towards the tempting door; I rest my hand upon the knob before The chance to ''scape this place might fade to nil, But then a stab of worry keeps me still. I know not where it comes from, this queer qualm, Yet something wrong now shakes my weary calm; Blotting the vile emotion from my thoughts, I ope the door ere I connect the dots. ****** Part 2. Adulteration
There are chords in the hearts of the most reckless which cannot be touched without emotion. ¡ªEdgar Allen Poe, "Masque of the Red Death"
1 The father clock then greets my late arrival By ticking off the time of festival, A time that stays a thorn upon my mind As one adrift on some disastrous wind. I see the faces of my closest friends Conversing on queer topics, odds and ends; What of these things I hardly can remember, As these remind me of that bleak December. Ah, yes¡ªthe scene begins to take its shape With cloudy hints of love beyond the drape Of memory, for I have yet to ask For her forgiveness on this evening''s masque. Leaving my friends at table, I pursue My lover''s mercy and our love renew; I stalk along the walls of dancing halls And search for her, the thrall of all my thralls. I look around the sea of dancing masks To spy my love, a daunting task of tasks, As masks of every lurid shape and style Fill all the dancing halls with aspects vile. Yet all the strength of youth burns through my soul, So that the prospect makes a sweeter goal; Through congregations of mad couples dancing, I search for her at every fervent glancing. I''d thrill to find my sweet inamorata ******* Upon the staircase, balcony, veranda, Perchance to even faint upon the sight Of her, whom I''d elope with in the night. I''d bear the deepest secrets of my soul And bear up all her weaknesses, the role I know by heart since childhood days of yore; I''d fill her heart to brimming like before. Yet looking on throughout the dancing halls, Amidst the chattering hum against the walls, I raise my eyes towards the balcony And gain a glimpse of her, my absentee! Before I call her name, she turns away; I dash towards the stairs and up the way To meet her ere I lose her in her flight¡ª I cannot bear to lose her love tonight! Cresting atop the staircase, I lose my chance To see her go with yet another glance; Turning to other couples, I now ask, "Have you seen the lady with the silver mask?" And one by one and two by two, I ask About her whereabouts, a frantic task That leads me in diverse directions thither, Leading me on to where I know not whither. And yet I ask and search and ask and search, Until I lose my way and start to lurch About, meandering along the ways They point in jest through obscure passageways. And so I wander through obscurer hallways, Thinking that I would stay forsaken always, Hiding from all my friends to hide my tears¡ª Hiding from everyone to hide my fears. And so I wander like the wandering Jew, Devoid of that companionship I knew When Love bestowed her graces on my head Before I lost her favor. Now I''m dead¡ª Dead to the world that still revolves around me¡ª Dead to the universe that still surrounds me¡ª Dead to the love that I cannot go near¡ª Dead to the love whose love I still hold dear. For life is but an empty space around me Without her wondrous intrigues to surround me, And all my eldritch tales lie in suspension Upon the pageless tome of comprehension. 2 A darkness more than night descends upon My heart of hearts; the father clock ticks on The fatal tune of midnight through the air, As if the ghouls of night are treading there¡ª There on the blurry edges of penumbra ******** Before retreating back into the umbra ********* Of utter darkness, on which shadows feed To sate a hunger of most urgent need¡ª There in a blink of truth and lingering doubt Just beyond my mortal ken to spy it out, Concealing ghost or ghoul or djinn or goblin, Haunting my mind just like a haunted cabin¡ª There in this cesspool''s cesspool of despair, Where mind becomes an ocean full of air So rank with all these memories of you That rhyme can barely give these thoughts their due! And so I tread into progressive shades And shadows that resembles those of Hades; Alone am I, treading through empty halls With echoes that resound along the walls¡ª With ever-fleeting snatches of my name Upon the sighing lips of my true flame, Forever reaching through the fog of time With broken melodies that breathe my crime . . . For crime it was that stole across my eyes, When I discovered all your vows were lies¡ª When I espied you with your new-found lover, Sharing your vile conspiracies that hover About my head in memories of you¡ª When by your lips you proved your vows untrue And thus defied me with that faithless kiss Shared with another man in whore-like bliss! How much I burned¡ªby God¡ªhow much I burned To grab his head and have it grossly turned; How much I wished¡ªby God¡ªhow much I wished To have your head lopped off and grossly squished Slowly between the heavy iron presses, Staining the walls as you have stained your dresses With all the sins that man enjoyed between Your slutty legs¡ªoutrageous and obscene! Such were my thoughts when I espied you there Engaging in your traitorous affair; I hid myself, while you (with knowing winks And gentle words and smiles that hint of kinks I dare not think of) led your eager swain Towards the bedroom just to make it plain What you intended! God, I''m so deranged To think you''d have my love for you exchanged With such a low-born dandy as you have Subjected to your will, as if a slave; I''ll kill that bastard-slave and set him free, And then I''ll sate my jealousies in thee! You locked the chamber door, whereat I hearkened ********** And felt my blood run hot as my thoughts darkened Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings. To hear those slutty sounds of heavy breathing, On which my raging breast was sorely heaving. You tore my heart apart with just a kiss, Compounding it with words that led to this, And so shall I now make decisive leave Only to return and see you sorely grieve! 3 The father clock ticks at the future knell Upon the fiend I''ll shortly send to hell! And yet the bloody mind must be a cold one In order to accomplish such a bold one As predetermined murder can allow, For vengeance to be executed now; Ah, by the turning of conceited thoughts To murder, I''ll untie the fickle knots That these transgressors consummated with Adulterous intentions through the scythe Of genius schemes. So go to work, my brains, And so relieve me of these heartsick pains! Minutes have passed in deepest contemplations, Wracking my thoughts in various compilations, Until the semblance of epiphany Strikes through the din of misty memory. The festive masquerade lasts seven days Within December''s wintertide; the ways To kill a man may take on many forms, But I shall be the Hamlet that performs *********** The murder that all witnesses remember As just an accident on this December; Yet to enact this plan of genius skill, I must observe the prey to make the kill. And so, beginning on the second day, I tail and spy them out in every way For some two days and nights, observing both From afar behind the garden undergrowth. In those two days and nights, they celebrate With all their friends before they consummate Their affair in that one second-floor bedroom That I had eavesdropped in my brooding gloom. And as I kept my vigil through the night, I saw that shameless dandy in my sight Upon the balcony to see the morrow¡ª Upon that balcony shall spill the sorrow Of my enamored wench when she''ll awaken To a tragedy that has her shaken; And thus, she''ll fly to me in all her sorrow, And I shall comfort her through night and morrow. And so, upon the third day of my plot, I spy them at a table ''midst the the onslaught Of conversation with their friends and mine. The time is now to see to my design! I stalk towards the stairs and up the way, Avoiding everyone I''ve seen today, Cresting atop the staircase with the aim To play the Hamlet of this vengeful game. I stalk my way through every obscure hallway That led towards their room; I''m making headway, Stealing through the shadows like an unseen host, Until I cross my doppelg?nger ghost! ************ I''m frozen in my steps in all my terror, Looking at my double-self in horror; I hold my breath and watch myself pass by, And watch him disappear before the eye Of doubtful sanity could shut him out; My coming doom shall wait upon this route; If I do not enact my plan this instant, I''ll drink the bile of vengeance inconsistent With all my predetermined plans a-shamble, In which I''ll pay so high a bloody gamble; I sprint along the corridors of gloom And steal into the quiet of their bedroom. A moment lingers as I catch my breath, Then steal into the balcony where death Shall shortly fall upon that bastard-lad, With just one alteration that I''ll add. I spy surroundings, crouch beside the rail, And with steel wire, I make the irons to fail When any weight is placed on them at all, And so will cause the leaner''s fatal fall. I work on this for maybe past an hour, Completing it as I begin to scour The genius of my work upon the irons; No lawyer shall suspect this con of cons. The work is done; I take my leave and steel Out of the room with happiness and zeal Inside my breast, and feel the cleverness Of it relieve these burdens of distress Off of my weary shoulders as I went Out of the gloom a most triumphant gent; I walk back to the chatter of the crowd, Feeling myself so happy and so proud, Descending down the stairs just like a king, So overly contented with my smiling That I attracted unforeseen attention In all my satisfied incomprehension. And so, I looked towards the sound and saw My lady standing their with looks of awe (And maybe shock) upon her comely face, Without a smidgen''s smidgen of disgrace Blushing upon her cheeks. Ah, saucy woman! Indeed, you are a most be-fetching demon With eyes as sweet and innocent as youth Belying every modesty of truth. And yet, I swallow all my hateful gall And smile upon the mistress of my thrall, Wearing a happy mask to hide the spite Lingering on my features from all sight. I said, "My lady, how I searched you out On every floor and hallway all throughout These very grounds. I thought I saw your ghost Some days ago amidst this crowded host." "Ah, still you go on with your ghostly fancies," She said. "I told my friends about your stories, And they are dying now to hear of them." I said, "I guess I can still whip up some "Of the ones I still remember from the past, At least as far back as my fancies last; But pray, who is this fellow here I''ve yet To be acquainted with? Or else we''ve met." "Indeed, we have not, sir," the bastard said, Stretching out his hand for me to shake instead Of bowing in the ancient English way. And so, I shook his hand without delay And said, "I''m still not used to shaking hands The Persian way, yet I can make amends." He said, "Excuse my gruff American Mannerisms to a fellow Englishman. "I''ve traveled much across th'' Atlantic pond, Becoming well-acquainted with and fond Of barley whiskey and of barley bread, Which often will at times go to my head." The crowd and my dear lady now all laughed, And all I wanted was to grab the haft Of ax or hatchet, cleave in half his head, And laugh as madmen laugh to mock the dead. Yet notwithstanding all my hatred for The fiend who used my lady for a whore, I took it all in stride and laughed with them, Knowing that ere long I will be rid of him. 4 I introduced myself to all her friends, With all my friends conversing on their weekends; I played along in put-on merriment, And suffered through it to my detriment. And so, I drank and ate and drank and ate My fill of feast from afternoon to eight At winter''s eventide, when all the night Begot the starry dazzle from the moonlight. We all were so enchanted, all of us, That even I forgot the vengeful fuss That had compelled me to enact my crime, On which forever runs this tuneless rhyme. Methought I felt the childhood ache of yore Upon the bosom of my heart that swore A thousand thousand words upon her head, Words of such love and constancy that said, ''For in the present of these transient hours, Please spend it here with me¡ªthe time is ours!'' Oh, how I wished these moments last forever, Even if I am doomed to see them never Again with mortal eyes and happy heart, Which I immortalize with all my art. Entranced for many minutes'' lengths of time, I now must delve into the heinous crime . . . For crime it was, when all was said and done, A crime of fated punishment begun With cruel intentions to exact revenge, Now turned on me to punish and avenge My cruel designs with blades of bitter guilt, Exacted on the cruel designs I built, Exacted on my instrument of death, Exacted on the jealous huff of breath. But ere it comes, the plot moves very slowly, As if the darkest hours of night unholy Drag their weary spans in undulating coils, While my yearning heart of hearts stirs up and boils. In conversation, we walk through the ballroom And up the stairs head now towards the bedroom, Passing the trek with jokes and laughs and smiles, As levity''s own laughter oft beguiles These heedless ignoramuses with laughter, Only to strike them unawares with slaughter; Such are my thoughts as we tread through the gloom Of corridors towards that fatal room. We ope the doors; we file into the room ****** With many a jest and joke upon the moon; We take our seats upon a chair or couch, While on the couch''s cushions I now slouch. We pass our time in further conversation, Until it rests on me to give narration To one of my fantastic eldritch tales; They want to listen to the scary details. I protest in pretended modesty And say, "I''m rusty in all honestly With words that bring a chill upon the spine, For I had not told tales since I was nine." "I know that you''ll do splendidly, my dear," My faithless mistress said. "So have now fear, But only tell us what begins to grow Upon your mind, as words begin to flow." Those eldritch words of fantasy come not Into my brain, but only come to nought; Then epiphany comes thrilling through my nerves; My simpleminded victim still deserves A veiled confession to my worthy crime, A worthy climax to a genius rhyme, And so I gird my nerves with nerves of steel, Saying with all force of vengeful zeal, "A darkness more than night had sunk upon A weary heart; the father clock ticked on The fatal tune of midnight through the air, As if the ghouls of night were treading there¡ª "There on the blurry edges of penumbra ******** Before retreating back into the umbra ********* Of utter darkness, on which shadows fed Upon the sleepless remnants of the dead¡ª "There in a blink of truth and lingering doubt Just beyond his mortal ken to spy it out, Concealing ghost or ghoul or djinn or goblin, Haunting his mind just like a haunted cabin¡ª "There in his cesspool''s cesspool of despair, Where mind became an ocean full of air So rank with all these memories of her That rhyme could barely quell them with succor! "And so he tread on in progressive shades And shadows that resembled those of Hades; Alone was he, treading through empty halls With echoes that resounded on the walls¡ª "With ever-fleeting snatches of his name Upon the sighing lips of his true flame, Forever reaching through the fog of time With broken melodies that breathe his crime . . . "For crime it was that stole across his eyes, When he discovered that her vows were lies¡ª When he espied her with a new-found lover, Sharing her vile conspiracies that hover "About his head in memories of youth¡ª When by her lips she proved her vows uncouth And thus defied him with that faithless kiss Shared with another man in whore-like bliss! "How much he burned¡ªby God¡ªhow much he burned To grab his head and have it grossly turned; How much he wished¡ªby God¡ªhow much he wished To have her head lopped off and grossly squished "Slowly between the heavy iron presses, Staining the walls as she had stained her dresses With all the sins that man enjoyed between Her slutty legs¡ªoutrageous and obscene!" At this, collective gasps slip from their open Mouths, as if their jaws hung loose and broken; At this, the bastard starts to look about, As if his very crime was figured out; At this, my mistress looks upon my face, Whereat I grin and give her heart the chase, And so her eyes begin to widen in Their sockets, as if caught in acts of sin; At this, I relish in their shock and awe, Witnessing my plot move on without a flaw, And so an evil smirk creep up my face, As I continue on in easy grace, "Such were his thoughts when he espied her there Engaging in her traitorous affair; He hid himself, while she (with knowing winks And gentle words and smiles that hint of kinks "He dared not think of) led her shame-faced swain Towards the bedroom just to make it plain What she intended! He was so deranged To think she''d have his love for her exchanged "With such a low-born dandy as she''d have Subjected to her will, as if a slave; He''d kill that bastard-slave and set him free, And then he''d sate in her his jealousy! "She locked the chamber door, whereat he hearkened ********** And felt his blood run hot as his thoughts darkened To hear those slutty sounds of heavy breathing, On which his raging breast was sorely heaving. "She tore his heart apart with just a kiss, Compounding it with words that led to this, And so did he now make decisive leave Only to return and see her sorely grieve!" At this, my audience is now upset; At this, the bastard ''gins to sweat and sweat; At this, my mistress starts with such distress That I begin to wonder at my progress; At this, I feel the smirk become sadistic, Now widening to something hedonistic, And so I grin and gloat upon the way I have my victims so distressed, and say, "The father clock ticked at the future knell Upon the fiend he''d shortly send to hell! And yet the bloody mind must be a cold one In order to accomplish such a bold one "As predetermined murder can allow, For vengeance to be executed now; Ah, by the turning of conceited thoughts To murder, he''d untie the fickle knots "That these transgressors consummated with Adulterous intentions through the scythe Of genius schemes. And so he worked his brain, And so relieve himself of heartsick pain! "Minutes then passed in deepest contemplations, Wracking his thoughts in various compilations, Until the semblance of epiphany Struck through the din of misty memory. "The masquerade lasts only seven days Within December''s wintertide; the ways To kill a man may take on many forms, But he shall act the Hamlet that performs *********** "The murder that all witnesses remember As just an accident that bleak December; Yet to enact this plan of genius skill, He must observe the prey to make the kill. "And so, beginning on the second day, He tailed and spied them out in every way For some two days and nights, observing both From afar behind the garden undergrowth. "In those two days and nights, they''d celebrate With all their friends before they consummate Their affair in that one second-floor bedroom That he had eavesdropped in his brooding gloom. "And as he kept his vigil through the night, He saw that shameless dandy in his sight Upon the balcony to see the morrow¡ª Upon that balcony would spill the sorrow "Of his enamored wench when she''d awaken To a tragedy that has her shaken; And thus, she''d fly to him in all her sorrow, And he would comfort her through night and morrow. "And so, upon the third day of his plot, He spied them at a table ''midst the the onslaught Of conversation with their friends at nine. The time was now to see to my design! "He stalked towards the stairs and up the way, Avoiding everyone he''d seen that day, Cresting atop the staircase with the aim To play the Hamlet of his vengeful game. "He stalked his way through every obscure hallway That led towards their room; he''s making headway, Stealing through the shadows like an unseen host, Until he crossed his doppelg?nger ghost! ************ "He''s frozen in his steps in all his terror, Looking at his double-self in horror; He held my breath and watched himself pass by, And watched him disappear before the eye "Of doubtful sanity could shut him out; His coming doom awaited on his route; If he did not enact his plan that instant, He''d drink the bile of vengeance inconsistent "With all his predetermined plans a-shamble, In which he''d pay so high a bloody gamble; He sprinted through the corridors of gloom And stole into the quiet of their bedroom. "A moment lingered as he caught his breath, Then stole into the balcony where death Would shortly fall upon that bastard-lad, With just one alteration that he''d add. "He spied surroundings, crouched beside the rail, And with steel wire, he made the irons to fail When any weight was placed on them at all, And so will cause the leaner''s fatal fall. "He worked on this for maybe past an hour, Completing it as he began to scour The genius of his work upon the irons; No lawyer should suspect this con of cons¡ª" My mistress starts to breathe in heaving fits, And leaves the table in chaotic spirits; I start up after her, and then the bastard Throws accusations at me like a dastard, Restraining me from going after her, For which I turn about harshly swear; My mistress now runs t''wards the double-doors Into the frosty night beyond those doors. Her steps within that interval of time Take on the speedy wings of death that mime The stab of guilt inside my breast to plea, For ere I even turn to see her flee, The bastard throws me down and follows her, Whereat a strain of panic screams of danger Inside my beating breast for her own safety, As if the ghost of guilt now comes to chase me. And so, I follow after both of them Beyond the double-doors and witness him In heated argument with her, as though The world of countless eyes would have him show Himself to be absolved of some egregious Sin that now endangers his prestigious Name. I boldly walk into this night of blame And reprimand her for her act of shame. She says, "By God, there''s more to this than you Can ever hope to know! Untrue¡ªuntrue Have I become for just a fleeting spell, Only to drag you also through my hell!" "What do you mean by this?" I ''gin to say, When in a moment all was torn away; That bastard suitor grabbed her by the arm And threw her back across the rails of harm. The rails give way; the night fills with her screams; The gruesome thud (which plagues my nightly dreams) Signals the death of my beloved mistress; The bastard turns and sprints in all distress Through double-doors and bedroom door, Past the startled audience I had before Thrilled with all the guile of my poetic art; And all the while, I sorrow for my part When I creep to the edge and see her there, Motionless within the moonlit rays. Despair Now takes a-hold of me when I perceive the blood Now spreading from her head, from which the thud Of impact still resounds within my dreams, And so I fill the night with my own screams; I scream her name into the bitter night, And nearly throw myself off in my plight . . . But all her friends then grab me just in time, Before I consummate my heinous crime In grief. What can assuage this immortal Ache than to live in penitent survival? The father clock then tolls its gravest knell Upon the midnight of my grieving spell, On which forever after tolls for me What could have been and now can never be. 5 The interval between that night and this, In which I pen these numbers vis-¨¤-vis, ************* Is like the contrast ''twixt the day and night; There is no hope for me to set things right. I cannot else recall what happened after, Because disaster follows on disaster, So discombobulating everything ************** Into a blur of half-remembered puking¡ª Of insane fits of grieving, anger, hope (A never-ending cycle when I mope), Followed by long intervals of sanity, In which I pine away my own humanity¡ª Of ever-growing binges on that drink To ease my nerves, perhaps to even shrink My sorrows to a spell of happiness That lives upon the name of drunkenness. And in the midst of this great twilight world, Which fate and guilt have me forever hurled, I do recall that man was apprehended For the murder that I had intended To be the instrument of his demise; Now with every breath I take, my very eyes Accuse me with the deed inside the mirror, In which I now avoid to look in horror. Authorities have jailed him for manslaughter, And while in jail (I''ve heard) he died of laughter, Laughing until he died of heart attack, Leaving me with no suspicion on my track. I am now rid of him, but it had come Upon the highest price, the deepest sum That was and always will be my own guilt, On which by cruel designs I had it built. Sometimes in contemplation, I do think About those evil thoughts I had that link Me to a vengeance I in bitterness Unleashed upon the head of my own mistress. Oh, how I wish I''d ears to hear the dead! What grand conspiracy would she have said, Had she survived the fall or never fell? If mortal ears could hear ghosts speak at all, What meant she when she said there''s more to this Than I can hope to know? I shan''t dismiss That final riddle from my mistress'' lips, From which the fatal secret never drips. For just a fleeting moment in her spell, She has condemned me to this endless hell Of wondering forever what she meant, Which I in nightly vigils still augment In restless dreams¡ªin ever-growing slices Of death I still enact in the abysses Of waking twilight and of dreaming gloom, Fixating on the glories of her tomb. What grand conspiracy is left unsaid Between the supple lips of the undead? What secret does she keep inside her heart That slowly tears my sanity apart? And in the stormy passions of such rage, Why can''t I let this go and turn the page? I do not know, nor shall I ever know, Nor can I ever hope to know. And so I follow on the whispers of the wind And cherish still the tales she left behind, Her siren songs of sweet conspiracies Sighing through the zephyrs of my memories. And so a darkness more than astral night Surrounds me in its sable folds of blight, In which a quiet calm descends upon My fading state of life so woebegone. And yet the sleep of death is ever-sweet, Sweet enough to be a crime to e''er repeat Within the day and night of my own life, Reliving both the heaven and the strife That was and always will be mine to find, And for a moment even leave behind The endless cycle when I lay myself On a bed of roses she arranged herself. Part 3. Consummation
But our love it was stronger by far than the love Of those who were older than we¡ª ¡ªEdgar Allan Poe, "Annabel Lee"
1 I then awoke: the quilt of scattered roses Shimmered like drops of blood upon the meadow, Each drop of blood like every tear of sorrow I shed in grief, sustaining such cruel loses Upon my heart of hearts that now reposes Here in this childhood realm of memory: Perchance within this tarnished sanctuary, Somewhere lies my mistress where her Rose is Still in full bloom on consecrated ground; Perchance within this field of emerald green, Her deathless Rose is waiting to be found Somewhere within the confines of this scene. I looked around and spied her Rose right there, Glistening in the realms of my despair. 2 Onward I trod, determined to obtain The Rose that promises to set me free, And as I crouched to pluck the petaled beauty, A whisper of my name makes me restrain Myself and leave it where it must remain; I turned my gaze and saw my lover there A few feet from her Rose. I stopped to stare, Then found myself transformed into a child again! I looked again and saw my love transformed Into a child as innocent and rare As ever children were so fashioned, formed By God''s own loving hands with loving care. As children shall we consummate our bliss With wondrous tales that we would reminisce. 3 I reached out for her hand, and when I clutched it, A thrill of happiness struck through my heart And tingled through my fingers with a smart, Whereon I jolted up when I had touched it And in my eagerness so nearly crushed it That I let go the instant she had winced; The instant that my hurting her evinced *************** Upon my face, she grasped my hand and hushed it, Soothing my worries with her siren voice, Soothing away my sorrows of despair, Instilling in me reason to rejoice And giving me new reason to forbear From throwing curses on my eagerness And adding to my wellspring of distress. 4 Holding her hand, I wandered through the meadow, Beholding in her face the grace and charm That ever could disarm my fears and arm My heart with hope and pluck against the shadow Of despair; now hand in hand, we walked the flow Of swaying stalks, a sea of emerald green Beneath a moon that beautifies the scene With gleams of light, setting the field aglow Against a dreamy canopy of stars. The consummation of our bliss draws nigh, As I now know that all of this is ours, Mine by sheer persistence, hers by every sigh That whispers her conspiracies so near¡ª And whispers her dark secrets in my ear . . . 5 A wicked grin creeps up my face; a look Of fear then lights upon her searching eyes, And something innocent in me now dies To see her shaken so when she mistook My jest for something presaging a spook, So with my words I tell my eldritch tales To comfort her before her visage pales . . . When something that I nearly overlook Now captures my attention and my horror: Her eyes then bleed out from their sockets full Of blood, and in the revelation of my terror, I stagger in surprise and try to pull Away from her strong grasp, and in my dreams I fill this verging nightmare with my screams!
FINISH 15. Creepy Clown Park (Ballad) * 15. Creepy Clown Park (Ballad) *
Part 1 Blasted is the day, And blasted is the night; Even though you pray, Who will bring the light? 1 Now Leer was walking home one night, Conversing with his friend; The two kept up their conversation As they turned ''round the bend Into a detour crossing through A field within a park, Which they could barely comprehend When evening gets too dark. And so they stood upon the entrance Of that foreboding place, Each wondering with masks of courage To hide his fear-filled face. So Ember (that is Leer''s good friend) Observed the park and said, "I''ve heard that there''s a creepy clown Who buried someone''s head "Somewhere inside this park about A month or two ago." So said the weirdly thoughtful Ember Before the two would go Along the creepy path right through A creepy field at night¡ª So thought the creepy-storied Leer Upon so dark a site. For Leer had heard about the clown That Ember spoke about; So when the two moved on their steps Along the fabled route, Leer said, "I know. I''ve heard that, too, But here is something more I''ve heard that even you don''t know: That killer clown would bore "A hole inside that person''s skull And scoop out all his brains, Before proceeding to devour The rest of his remains." And so the curious Ember said, "What did he use to bore His skull? An auger? Or a file?" Leer, walking as before, Began to walk a little faster, Saying, "I''m not too keen On how he bores a skull right through, Since I have never seen "Directly how he''s done all that, But only heard in rumor; And as to why, I''ll just assume That he''s in some bad humor." Bad humor was the least of it, If all of that was true, So thought the creepy-storied Leer In his expansive purview. Ember had nothing left to say Of Leer''s tremendous knowledge Of creepy tales and creepy hearsay That Leer would not acknowledge. And so the two tread homeward-bound Through creepy path and park In silence, for the night was young, Still westering the dark Completely t''wards the Western edge Of such a far-off ambit, * Where just a half an hour since The sun had set upon it. Now almost all the sky was black Towards the western edge Of that far-off horizon where It levels on a straightedge, But in the darkness of the park, Embowered by the trees, It now took on the creepy cast Of something on the breeze That rustles through the dying leaves Of autumn''s fading glory, And so the weary Ember told Another creepy story. He said, "I''ve heard another clown Has come into this place, But this one doesn''t wear a mask Or even have a face. "He''s not a clown that wears the mask Or makeup of a clown, But hides the trace of something more That few have ever known." "How do you know, then?" Leer now said. "Have you seen it yourself?" A smile crept up on Ember''s face, So full of his own self. And so Leer called off Ember''s bluff, Continuing to walk A little faster on the path Towards the other block¡ª Continuing to walk along The creepy path at night¡ª Continuing to walk among The shadows in the moonlight¡ª Continuing to share their tales Of ever-gruesome horrors, Both adding to the gruesomeness Of their reported rumors¡ª Continuing to walk and walk, Until both boys perceived That something supernatural Had both of them deceived. So Ember looked looked upon his watch And cried out, "Holy shit, It''s almost nearing midnight now!" He nearly had a fit. So Leer now tried to calm his friend And said, "Don''t think about it! I think we''ve entered something strange; On this, I cannot doubt it." Leer then directed Ember''s gaze Towards the path in front, Their hopes now drifting far behind, Their fears now on the forefront. They saw the path stretch on and on Into the gloom ahead, As though there was no end in sight, Filling them both with dread. So both boys turned around and saw That they had walked so far Beyond the entrance of the park; It''s such a sight bizarre; They knew not where they are. 2 The two kept looking on in fear As if the world had gone So wrong or just moved out of kilter; Something was going on. The two looked at each other now, Both Leer and Ember thinking Such thoughts as only crazies thought, Except in silent drinking Over the cause of something felt But never truly seen. The two decided to retrace The path where they had been Walking along in foolishness, So heedless of the dangers As they conversed on creepypastas ** Surrounding clowns and strangers. The topic of much stranger clowns Now popped inside their heads, As if the ghost of Pennywise *** Would tear them both to shreds. If such a monster could exist Outside of Stephen King, Were all these killer clowns the henchmen Of some God-awful thing Beyond the comprehension of Mere rational adults, Accessible through childhood fears With horrible results? If clowns were clowns and jokers jokers, Who was this Pennywise? Was he the Devil''s avatar, A monster in disguise? Such horrid thoughts preoccupied The minds of both these boys, For something worse than Pennywise Treated these two like toys. A distant chime resounded through The distance just ahead, And then some moments now elapsed When something reared its head Within the distant darkness just Beyond the wall of sight; A faceless head with tufts of hair Gave both these boys a fright, Making them jump and take steps back And stifle back their screams. It had to be a trick of light; It had to be a dream. Now both boys bolted back in terror, Running the other way Along the path where they had been Talking themselves astray Into the park when it got dark, Whiling the minutes by¡ª Running their way towards the entrance, Spending their strength thereby¡ª Panicking all the while they ran, Wasting their breath away¡ª Running their way towards a trap In headlong getaway¡ª Running until they saw and halted Inside the gloomy park. Something else was there ahead of them Amidst the shadows dark. Closer and closer did they come, These fiends without their faces, Until they saw their phantom shapes Walking in shambling paces, As if they were just strolling through A sunny park in spring, If only they had something else Besides the grizzly thing That hung about their faceless heads¡ª Two bloody nooses ''round Their shriveled necks of skin and bone That made a creaking sound Whenever they turned ''round their heads. Now both boys screamed in fright And ran right off the lighted path Into the wooded night. And like two phantoms made of breath, Both fiends now disappeared, Two figments of imagination Thought up by something weird¡ª Something far weirder than a clown That kills without a knife¡ª Something far weirder than two fiends That lived a faceless life¡ª Something both boys would have to face Before this night is done¡ª Something that has the upper hand On everyone¡ªbut one, Whose name is Allison. Part 2 Everyone that lives Must someday have to die; Fate never really gives A damn for you or I! 1 Our Allison had dreamed a dream About two stranded boys, Running and screaming for their lives, Making a lot of noise. So when she woke, she found herself Inside that very park, Although she hadn''t any clue Why everything was dark. You see, she took some medication To quell the horrid dreams Of those who die of fright at night, Dying in all their screams, Yet when she checked her cabinet, She found there wasn''t any; And so she tossed and turned tonight And heard those screams a-plenty. She picked herself right off the ground And thought she saw two fiends That had no faces on their heads, Two fiends that scared two friends Right off into the darkened woods That lined the darkened path; The phantom fiends then disappeared Before they faced her wrath. And so she went right off the path In search of those two boys, Who ran into the wooded park And made a lot of noise. She called for them, although she did Not know their names just yet; She only knew that they were scared, Which made her quite upset. And so she stalked into the woods To search the poor boys out; She had to find them ere those fiends do In this ungodly hideout. For in her heart, a kind of thump Resounded with a clang, As if she stood beneath the bells That ever coldly rang The dreaded knell that tells the time When someone somewhere dies; Ah, such becomes the fugitive When corpses shall arise To trap the weary soul within The confines of the park, Wherein all screams will fade away Unheeded in the dark. And so she kept on looking for Those fugitives a-missing, When something sinister began To rear its head a-hissing A few feet just ahead of her, Wrapping around a tree¡ª A giant centipede of such Immense enormity That Allison stood still in shock To see it there at all; It had large pinchers, legs and fangs, All big enough to maul. But then she saw some smaller ones, Still bigger than her arms, Come out from every hiding place, Which caused her much alarm; From trees and underneath the scrub Came all these centipedes; From hidden dens beneath the earth They came in one stampede. So in her hand appeared the blade, The Vorpal blade of death; She stood her guard and waited for Th'' attack with bated breath. She''d slice them up if they came near Enough to threaten her With pinching legs and venomed fangs, Should such a charge occur! And yet, the smaller centipedes Kept well off from her stance, As if the big one warned them off With barely but a glance, Invisible as it may seem As Allison could see; But then the bigger centipede Alighted from the tree And lowered its enormous length On pinchers to the ground, Remaining there in silence as She looked it all around. Ah, not the least deterrence made he, But kept obeisance there; When Allison made not a move, His voice came through the air And said, "Fear not this centipede With Vorpal blade in hand, But trust me with your golden heart And try to understand. "I''m only but a messenger, A guide to all lost souls; There are two souls lost in these woods, Two souls who are but fools." Now Allison had dropped her guard And listened to this spirit, For this one had no trace of malice Or foul intentions in it. She said, "Do you know where they are, Those two lost in these woods?" The spirit said, "Indeed, I do, As any spirit should, "For in these woods lurks something vile, A murderer whose kind I''ve never yet beheld before Or held inside my mind. "He masquerades in many forms To lure his victims in, And sometimes alters space and time, Or uses mannequins "To scare his victims off the path Towards his hidden lair, Wherein he tends to taunt his victims In one collective nightmare. "And should you choose to go that route, I''ll take you there this minute, But not inside that Borderland Wherein he rules within it." So said the giant centipede; Now Allison had sense To heed the spirit''s warning thus, Inquiring, "How long since "Had he resided in these woods? A week? A month? A year?" The centipede replied in full, "He came within our sphere "Two months ago when all was dark Before the blood moon broke Over the trees, a ghastly sight, Amidst a spectral smoke. "Since then, a spectral haze would cloak These woods at certain hours When sleepless sleepers stayed awake In fear of dreadful powers "That lie beyond my spectral ken, Beyond the sight of death; All those who stayed awake by then Would breathe their final breath Upon this shibboleth: "''Blasted is the day, And blasted is the night; Even though I pray, Who will bring me light? "''Everyone that lives Must someday have to die; Fate never really gives A damn for you or I!''" 2 So spoke the centipede his warning, A-waft upon the air; Now Allison had better gist Of what went on o''er there Beyond the Borderlands whereon This monster would extinguish The lives of all the lost and lonely, Who die in bitter anguish. She felt a chill run up her spine To heed that shibboleth, As though it threw a subtle curse Upon her fearful breath, For she remembered in her dreams Those very lines that stirred The storms within her beating heart Of hearts, as if each word Caressed her to complacency, Then turned her waking dreams Into the stuff of nightmares filled With many silent screams. She shook it off the best she could And recomposed herself, Then gathered up the shreds of courage Now scattered on the shelf Of hasty misinterpretation And niggardly assessment; She climbed up on the centipede And sat without a comment. And then the giant centipede Crawled quickly through the wood O''er fallen trees and breaking twigs, Much quicker than it should, Forcing poor Allison to hug Her straddling legs around The bony undulating segments, Bare feet above the ground. And when she chanced to look around, She saw the woods a-blur; Each overhanging branch and log Whizzed past her in a stir Of roller-coaster jolts and turns That wore her body out, And yet she clung with hands and legs, Her hair blown all about Through stirring streams of nighttime air; And Allison this way Clung on for minutes at a time Into the the crazy fray. She clung and clung with all her strength, Clung tight with gripping hands, Until the centipede slowed down; They''ve reached the Borderland, Where stalked that entity of death That lures lost souls away, Where strayed those lost and weary youngsters From the light of night and day. No wind caressed her supple skin, And yet a heaviness Of air weighed down this Borderland With something of distress, The stress of souls and dark emotions A-whirling through her spirit, As if their screams churned up a sea That ravaged her upon it. She raised herself and saw the staircase, A staircase in the woods, So harmless anywhere but here Wherein the object stood Without a house attached to it¡ª Without a bannister To grasp when one ascends the steps¡ª With nothing but a door Upon that topmost landing where It beckons one to come And knock upon the knocker there, Where all our nightmares come from. After alighting from its back, She said, "Is this the place?" The centipede then said, "Indeed, The house without a trace "Of life within its walls of darkness, Where nothing''s as it seems; Most humans can''t go further hence, Except inside their dreams. "But you are different from the rest, For you have walked the path This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.That leads through black infinity From fearfulness to wrath." Yet even with such words of courage Filtering through her ears, She felt a chill run up her spine, Confirming all her fears; She said, "I''m not sure what might happen When I go up those stairs." The centipede replied, "Ah, courage Comes from the stew of fears, "For only in the blackest night Shall courage light its flame¡ª For only ''midst the storm of fear Shall strength find its true name. "Have courage, child, as you had once When your own grandpa died; He''s watching over you right now¡ª" She turned and slowly eyed The centipede before her there, Then said, "Tell him I love him." Then tears filled up her eyes, then trailed Her cheeks in night''s fair dim, Whereat the centipede replied, "He knows already, child." And so her candled flame renewed, Her courage undefiled¡ª And so she ventured t''wards the stairs And climbed up all the steps, Watching the door grow every closer, Approaching dream-filled depths Where something hidden from the mind Holds sway on weaker souls; She reached the landing, reached the door Wherein lurked ghosts and ghouls, Then crept towards the door to knock, Then turned around and saw That centipede had disappeared; She turned around in awe. She raised her hand to touch the knocker, But paused before the knock; The night was silent, chill and dead, As if time stopped the clock¡ª The calm before the shock. Part 3 Blasted is the day, And blasted is the night; Even though we pray, Who will bring the light? 1 Metallic knocks shook through the dungeon And woke both youngsters up; They found themselves in man-sized cages, A-hanging from the top Of some abysmal underground Where prisoners are kept¡ª Where teenagers have screamed in vain¡ª Where many children wept. Ah, in this Hidden Realm of pain Lie tortures manifold: The heavy chains and manacles (Feeling so metal-cold) Kept both their arms and legs in place That offered no succor, Restricting movement to their cages, Keeping them where they were. So Ember said, "Are we now dead? Or are we still alive?" So Leer replied, "We have not died, So we might still survive." Then Ember, struggling in his cage A-hanging from the ceiling, Felt every motion of each sway That sent his senses reeling From side to side, a pendulum Making him want to puke, As though the world''s gone topsy-turvy And crazy like a kook. So Ember said, "This motion sickness Will be the death of me, And more than that (and worst of all), I really need to pee!" "Then tinkle somewhere else," said Leer, Averting from the view. "For God''s sake, not in front of me!" So Ember took the cue. He turned around, unzipped his fly, And tinkled down the deep Abyss that echoed back each drop, As though aroused from sleep, For in those depths lurked something there Beyond his mortal ken, Wherein a darkness more than night Roused every now and then. Yet for these two, they did not know The peril they were in, For they were sacrificial kids Predestined to be eaten. When Ember zipped his open fly, He looked towards his friend And said, "My God, what is this place? Who sent us to this end?" "Beats me," said Leer, who now stood up And looked beyond the bars Around their cavernous abode. "I cannot see the stars, "So we might be inside a dungeon Or even underground. Do you remember anything When we were in the playground?" "I do not know for sure," said Ember, Wracking his weary brain. "Those things with nooses ''round their necks, They''re all I ascertain. "Can you remember anything Beyond that wicked pair? Can you remember what we did Before we woke up here?" And for a time, Leer wracked his brain For something else he saw Or did, but soon he shook his head. "I can''t. It''s blah, blah, blah "For me. I have no other clue," And then he banged his fist Against the bars of his own cage, For he was getting pissed At something he had missed. 2 Now Allison, she thought she heard The echo of a bang Resounding somewhere far below, Giving her heart a pang, Of something she had never felt And made her so surprised, A sense of kindred helplessness To courage galvanized. The echoes ceased upon the threshold Of half-heard silences, And as she pushed the door aside, She spied the differences Between the chilly breeze outside And the cozy warmth within, Where someone said in stirring echoes, "It''s cold outside; come in!" She ventured forth and let the door Shut out the world of night, Thudding against the stalwart jamb; Now every hallway light Lit up before her, one by one, Beckoning her to follow; And so she followed down the hall Towards that haunted hollow Where countless teens and children went Before her. Then a thread Of something cold ran up her spine. "What is this place?" she said. "This is a world of my creation," The voice replied again, "For I have built a home of comfort From a world of bitter pain, "A world more fraught with agonies Than you can understand." So said the voice within the halls Inside this Borderland. But Alice, she was full of pluck And walked ahead in thought, Thinking about her grandpapa Wherein her dreams she sought The comfort of his final words: "I''m always with you, child, And always will forever stay Within you reconciled." Upon these words she often dwelled To keep her spirits up, And as she walked the winding length Of hallway, she saw a cup Sitting upon the floor before Her feet. She crouched to grab The vessel off the ground, when in Her heart she felt a stab Of panic flooding through her body; She screamed an oath of doom, But when she stood, she found herself Inside a dining room. A row of hanging chandeliers Lit up the gloomy ceiling, Casting dark shades and shadows there, Sending her gaze a-reeling, Until her sense of balance faltered And felled her in a swoon, Wherein she lingered for a spell Ere waking to the tune Of something sounding far away And dissipating there; She thought she heard a rattling cage, Then turned her thoughts elsewhere. She found herself upon a chair, A-sitting like a princess Dressed in a pinafore of white Over a sky-blue dress. Beside her was a table full Of victual and drink To quench her hunger and her thirst, But all this made her think About the words the centipede Imparted ere departing: Something about the day and night Was creeping in and starting To knock the doors of her queer heart With ever-lurking terror; She raised her gaze along the table And spied the fiend in horror! For there beyond the candelabra Lighting the table ''tween them, There in the flicker of its light Lighting the gloom around them, There in the chair with glass in hand Was someone sitting, raising His glass of human blood to her, Saying the same odd phrasing, "''Blasted is the day, And blasted is the night; Even though I pray, Who will bring me light? "''Everyone that lives Must someday have to die; Fate never really gives A damn for you or I!''" Now Allison, she gulped her qualms And spied her ghastly host, Noticing through his plasmic body The substance of a ghost. He had a top hat on his head And wore a suit in white, His eyes like lamplights made of fire Shrouded in faceless night; He took his glass and took a sip, Relished the ghastly taste, Then set his glass back on the table And looked where fear had traced The worry lines upon her face And said, "It''s rare to have A visitor as young as you To be so bold and brave, "To venture to these hidden parts Where not a soul before Has dared to place a wayward foot Beyond my entrance door. "So I acknowledge you, fair knight!" He raised his glass to her Again as he had done before And said, "Now let me enter- Tain you with something truly grand, A spectacle of wonder Before your wayward-glancing eyes!" And booming sounds of thunder Rumbled the chamber all around them, And lightning flashed the room, And winds blew out the candlelights And cast her world in gloom Like the darkness of the tomb. 3 Now plunged into another swoon That took her underground, She oped her eyes into the chasm **** Below her, where she found The two lost boys in hanging cages, A-hanging from long chains; She had a God''s-eye-view of them And saw their dead remains. Her astral body flew towards These two unfortunates, There skeletons encaged in death''s Repulsive shroud, their fates Unknown to all but Allison, Who saw in her mind''s eye The way they died their starving deaths, Which made her question: "Why?" And so her vision in her swoon Began to dissipate Into the stuff of all our nightmares, The portents of our fate; And now she found herself back here Inside the dining room, Finding her host approaching her Wherein she sat in gloom; And so she stood up from her chair And stood her ground in fear, Looking upon his face in shadow With fiery eyes that leer Upon the form of Allison, Making her heart to quake; She saw a boneyard in those eyes With but a single look, So she repeated her one question And said unto this ghost, "By God, hy must you be so cruel? What is it that you''ve lost?" "Because," he said, "the world''s a cruel And godless place of pain, Wherein the only ones who rule Are the ones that still remain "Alive to kill before they''re killed By stronger enemies: This is the reason why I''m here¡ª To stave off my demise "By killing teens and children here T'' extend my very life, Shedding the blood of those who wander Here with this very knife!" And suiting actions to his words, He manifested there Within his hand a vorpal blade Making Allison stare In shock upon another wielder Of fate within his hand; Now Allison knew why she felt Such dread within this land, For here within these walls of death Resides her host in prison, And such became her foolish quest When corpses have arisen To trap these weary souls within The confines of this room, Where teens'' and children''s screams fade out Unheeded in this tomb! Within her hand was manifest The very vorpal blade She used to free her grandpapa From a ghastly soul-trade. She stood her guard on tenuous feet, Conscious of her own heart Beating the tune of death against Her ribs and said with a start, "That monstrous self''s not who you are! You''re just an innocent Whose deeds have trapped you in this place, But if you now repent¡ª" "Don''t talk to me," he said in rage, "Of such vain falsity, For when I peered in that abyss, Th'' abyss peered back at me "And found me guilty of these crimes And took me over here; I''ve shed more blood than you could know And shed so many a tear "That all of my compassion now Lies dead within this place; I''m dead to everyone I knew, A fiend without a face!" And with those words, he took his blade And charged at Allison, And swung his blade across her waist, But ere the deed was done, Our heroine had her own blade And parried best she could, Blocking th'' attack with all her strength And all her boiling blood! And yet the force of his attack Was much too great for her, Sending her smashing ''gainst the wall Amidst a ghastly stir Of nightmares echoing inside Her head like ringing bells, Her mind a-stir with teens and children Filling her ears with yells, Till everything turned black as night Like a swoon within a swoon, Wherein was nought but starless sky Behind a blood-red moon; And here she stayed in dreamless sleep With eyes of night, whose spell Was cast upon her like the others From out a common well, Wherein the dead now dwell. Part 4
He who fights with monsters might take care, lest he thereby become a monster. And when you gaze long into an abyss, the abyss also gazes into you. ¡ªFriedrich Nietzsche, Beyond Good and Evil, Chapter IV: Maxims and Interludes, Aphorism 146
1 Ember and Leer sat petrified Within their hanging cages, For both of them had seen a ghost girl Visiting from past ages, As if to frighten them in their Distressing circumstances; And if she came to terrify them With unforeseen advances, Leer thought that maybe she knew where He and his friend are at, But fearful Ember had misgivings And stayed silent as a cat, And only gazed upon this specter Before she disappeared From view, and only then did he Acknowledge such a weird And eerie visitation. After He found his wits again, He said, "If that was an illusion, Then maybe we''re insane, "And all this place around us is Just a nightmare waiting For both of us to wake up from As we''re here contemplating¡ª" "Enough!" Leer said, a-standing in His cage. "We have t'' accept The fact that everything we''ve seen Is real," and here he stepped Towards the edge of his own cage And looked around the cavern (Looking below and looking up), Then spied a glowing lantern A-floating through the air before him, Until it stopped just so, And through its light there floated up A chain from down below That went its way towards the ceiling Unseen above his head. So stared and gaped the awestruck With superstitious dread, While Ember turned his gaze away But looked on still, despite The brilliance of the spectacle A-blinding his own sight. The lantern then transformed into Another hanging cage, Wherein there slept in deep repose A girl about their age. Then Ember said, a-pointing, "That''s The ghost girl we just saw!" And Leer, he looked and saw her, too, Gazing at her in awe. Leer said, "Do you believe me now?" And Ember said he did, So Leer now said, "We have to wake her And ask her where we''re hid¡ª" "But do you think she knows," said Ember, "Wherein this place we are? And do you think she''ll still remember Her ghostly visit here?" "I do not know for sure," Leer said, "Until we wake her up." And so they called and clapped their hands and Rattled their jailbird setup Into a noisy buildup. 2 When Allison roused from her sleep, She woke to such a clamor That she at first began to scream And then to outright stammer Such words of gibberish that she Can''t understand their meaning. After a time, she rose and oped Her eyes and rubbed them, gleaning One glance towards the noisy source, And found the two lost boys; She said, "I thought you two were dead! That bastard''s ghastly ploys "Have cheated me enough, and now I''m here inside this horrid place!" She looked again towards the boys And sighed in her disgrace. "Do you know where we are?" Leer said, But Allison was mute And only shook her head and said, "Within a single minute, "I would have gotten both of you Out of this place if I Knew exactly where we are right now And how t'' escape and fly." But just as she had given up, One of the boy then said, "We saw you floating by our cages, But I don''t think you''re dead." Now Allison looked at that boy Beyond her prison cell And said, "When I had peered your Your cages where you dwell, "I only saw two skeletons And though you both had died, But that was just the bastard''s spell! God, why should he have lied?" "Who is this ''bastard'' that you speak of?" Leer said; then Ember asked, "When Leer and I were in the park, Did he send out those masked "A-shambling phantoms after us? We took our wayward flight Into the woods and got ourselves Lost in our hast and fright." She said, "I don''t know who he is, But he''s much stronger than I am and wields the blade I have Far better than I can. "And as for those two shambling things, I saw them disappear Just as you said, but I got lost Along the way in fear . . . ." And so she told them her adventure, And both boys heard her out, The listeners and storyteller Linked in th'' exchange throughout, But when she neared her story''s end About her ghostly visit, Our Allison cut off her words. Then Ember said, "What is it?" "We might be able to escape," She said after a time, "But you two have to let me sleep Upon it in the meantime," And with those words, she manifested Her vorpal blade in hand And swung with all her might across The cage bars with a backhand Swing and destroyed them right in front Of both her watchers with Their mouths agape in shock and awe, Both witness to a myth Becoming true before their eyes; Now Allison, she laid Herself down on her back and went To sleep beside her blade. Both boys then waited for a time, Exchanging looks between them, And saw the ghost of Allison Rise up and reconvene them By floating out across the span Between her cage and theirs; She floated to them, blade in hand, Ignoring both their stares, Then raised her blade across Leer''s cage And broke the bars away, Then did the same for Ember who Broke down in tears the way A babe that doesn''t see its mother Cries out to reach her hand; Our Allison reached out to him, For she could understand The plight of reaching for the grasp Of a long-vanished parent, And led both boys a-floating with her Back to her cage. Apparent Was the enchantment in their eyes As both boys now beheld Her spirit entering her body, A sight unparalleled In all their life, awake or dreaming; And so they waited for her To open up her eyes, awaiting The tell-tale twinkle o''er her Eyelids of sleep that bore her. 3 When Allison roused from her sleep The second time, she said, "You better not have kissed me, boys, Or else you''ll both be dead!" Right then the blushing Leer and Ember Backed off away from her, Edging themselves against the bars When she began to stir, So Ember said, "We never did that! I promise on my life!" And Leer, he added, "Please, don''t kill us," And looked upon her knife. When Allison looked at those boys, Both looking at her blade, She said, "There is no need for killing, So please don''t be afraid," And up she rose upon her feet And bade them to get up, For they had better things to do Than dwell on such a holdup; So Leer and Ember rose and stood, And to their own surprise, They witnessed Allison dispel Her blade before their eyes. "I''ve entered here within a swoon," She said, "so this whole space Must be a dream for dreamers who Wander and lose their place; "You''ve lost yourselves amongst the dead Who''ve wandered here and died; You''ve let those spirits lead you on, So let me be your guide," And here she reached her hands to them, And they both took each hand; She said, "Take courage, both of you, For I know not where we''ll land; "Just know that it''s a falling dream That gets us out of here; Like Alice down the rabbit hole, You''ve nothing left the fear, "Except what you in your own minds Create for your own selves, For you know not that you are gods Amidst mere shades and elves; "In both of you''s a knight at heart That lies asleep, unseen, But come with me, the both of you, And you''ll see what I mean." And so they followed her example And walked towards the brink, The three of them now looking down, And ere their second blink, They all went down the sink! 4 So down and down and down they went In free-fall like three stones, Falling and falling till they landed Inside a field of bones, Where many teens and children there Have died within their sleep, Dying in nightmares manifold In death''s embracing reap. And here they groaned on aching backs And sides and necks and heads, All three of them now waking up From three revolting beds Made from the bones of teens and children That cut them on their landing; Now picking themselves up, they saw A lonely staircase standing Forlorn above their heads like some Sentinel of the grave, When Allison discerned the place, She had another brain wave And said, "We have to keep on moving Away from these odd parts," And here she led them both away With beating heart of hearts Beating with all the dread of death Lurking with subtle creep, For now''s that time of night again When all the world''s asleep, Except for two foul entities A-shambling in the park, Two fiends that Allison had glimpsed But had Leer and Ember mark The horrors they remembered well When running for their lives; But Allison, she said, "Take heart And arm yourselves with knives!" And here she stretched out her own hand And formed her vorpal blade there, So Leer and Ember followed suit And in their fingers laid there Not vorpal knives of steely metal But pistols made to shoot; She turned around and looked at them And said, "Don''t fire en route "Haphazardly at all the shades Within these woody parts, For there are things that can''t be killed With your ballistic arts." And so they walked on through the woods, Two pistoleers and one Girl with her vorpal blade aglow Leading the way when someone Or something up ahead of them Caught all three by surprise: It was the giant centipede To Allison''s dear eyes. She said, "Is that you, Centipede, A-lurking over there?" And so the centipede replied, "There''s danger everywhere, "Dear children! Follow all my kin Away from these odd parts; That godless man I told you of Is trained in ghoulish arts," And with his words, a thousand smaller Centipedes led the way, Emerging from the grounds beneath Their feet; so making headway, The trio followed all these small ones Beyond the wooded grounds Into the open field wherein A thousand cricket-sounds Were chirping tunes that filled their ears, Till all at once, they all Fell silent on the dread approach Of two fiends walking tall! Before the boys ran off, she said, "You stay yourselves and face Your fears! We''re in this for the fight Within this godless place!" The boys looked back at her in horror And saw the worry lines Tracing themselves upon her face At something in the confines Behind them on the pathway there Within the blood moon''s light. "I''ll keep him off as long''s I can," She said, "but you must fight! We all must fight tonight!" 5 Before another word was said, The three took up their stances And eyed their foes with desperate glares Midst desperate circumstances. While Allison kept watch upon The unseen shade behind them, Ember and Leer looked on in horror At their two fiends assigned them, For they had nooses ''round the necks With lolling heads and eyes, With gaping mouths that formed foul grins And breathed out hideous cries; Then those two fiends detached their heads Off of their shoulders bare, And ''round their necks their nooses twined Like chains with balls that glare; The boys'' two shambling fiends took off And charged the trembling group, Swinging their heads over their bodies From nooses in a loop, So Leer and Ember aimed and fired Rounds at the ghastly duo, But when they split in shambling sprints And charged the weary trio, The two boys cursed and turned and ran, Both running in defeat, While Allison, she leaped and rolled And wheeled upon her feet With outstretched arm and hand and blade And clave the fiends in two In the middle of their bodies there, Cutting through bone and sinew, Till both of them fell down like trees Within this silent park, That''s when the third fiend made his move, Charging her in the dark, Lunging with vorpal blade in hand To stab her in the back; Ere Allison had turned around To see the sly attack, Before the third fiend struck his blow And murdered Allison, Both Leer and Ember aimed their guns And shot that shadow-spawn In the middle of his shoulder blades, Whereon he screamed in pain And filed the night with horrid screeches¡ª Such was the bitter strain. So Allison, she wheeled around With blade arrayed for slaughter, And charged him, cutting at the fiend As if she cut through water, But that third fiend just dissipated And filled the night with laughter, Then said, "Whoever fights with monsters Becomes a monster after, "For when you look into th'' abyss, Th'' abyss looks into you! And you, my dear, will turn a monster Before your life is through!" With all their strength to run and turn And aim and shoot now low, The boys now stared at her in awe; Leer said, "We need to know¡ª" "What your name is," Ember continued, "For we have never seen Anyone move and strike like that Outside the TV screen." So just before the sun arose Upon the east horizon, She turned to both of them and said (Before the night was done), "My name is Allison."
FINISH 16. A Haunted Escapade (Sonnets) 16. A Haunted Escapade (Sonnets)
Now, whenever I pass by our 2nd floor corridor in the house, I imagine seeing a pale girl in a Victorian style dress holding up an axe, by the top of the stairs. ¡ªEleonne Moona (from Wattpad)
1. The Scroll I am alone, cut off from all the things That used to bring me joy; I am a shell Of what I was, a husk of bitter stings That shock each beating pulse! This hell Of my own mind, of my own making, still Provides the burning ember of creation Inside this haunted mind. I take this quill And dip it in the blood of my damnation And write the sentence of my penance here Upon this very scroll you¡¯re reading now; I know you¡¯re reading this, but do not fear, For I¡¯ll be with you to the end somehow, Even as day shall bleed to endless night That snuffs the flame of courage into fright . . . 2. The Room A thousand worries kept me from the fold Of gentle sleep, because it was the time When everything that crept commits a crime Against the vulnerable, the young and bold, Whose plastic minds have conjured up a field Of sleepless dreams that swim before their eyes¡ª Of monsters harking to their startled cries When heedless parents fail to come and shield Their sons and daughters from the looming threat; But even when they come to comfort them, Their presence driving ghouls back in retreat, They come back once they¡¯re gone to make us scream: I screamed, but still my parents heard me not; This room has teeth, and in its jaws I¡¯m caught. 3. The Screams The screams of Hell awoke me from my slumber, As something sharp had spiked me through the heart; Flinging the sheets, I sat up with a start, My mind submerged in worries without number Over the lunacies that still encumber My waking life with thoughts of cruel despair, Because my childhood died upon the air On this ungodly night! I still remember (By God, I still remember) how their screams Have scraped the silence bare, have left the strings Of love to rot, have poisoned words, have springs Of blood and tears bleed out, have filled my dreams With visionary traumas traced with hate: Such was my lot, and such is now my fate. 4. The Monsters How can I sleep? A pandemonium Of bitter screams and yet more arguments Corrupt the sleepless night with monuments Of hate and inner pain that leave me numb, As if my world has fallen from a crumb Of discontent, my prayers mere ornaments! What origins, what foul determinants, Fester my life with such a horrid outcome? I left the bed and crept out past the door, Then through the hallway, down the stairs, then halted Before the ruckus of my parents'' war Inside the family room: they both assaulted Each other with their words like saber-cuts, The floor beneath them splayed with blood and guts. 5. The Entrapment I gasped and faltered in my step, then froze, Feeling the goosebumps resurrect my skin With horrid premonitions from within, As though my body knew these awful throes Of sudden revelation might disclose My presence to the monsters in their fight: The screams have stopped, and so I take my flight Through staircase, hallway, bedroom door, and shadows, Whereat I slammed the door and propped a chair Against the knob, then waited in despair: I backed myself against the corner, crying. Their prowling footsteps creaked upon the stair, Reverberating through the midnight air: Now trapped inside my room, I felt like dying. 6. Their Voices Their footsteps creaked upon the staircase, through The hallway, getting louder than before, And halted on the threshold of my door, Where something dark formed underneath and grew Across the carpet of my room towards me; And so I turned the lamp, and back it shrank, Leaving the carpet wet whereon it stank Of blood, the stench of which assaults and swords me. I vomited the contents of my stomach, Whereat my parents said, ¡°Are you all right?¡± And all my nerves then shook in utter fright: Besides the sight of blood, besides its haemic * Stench, their voices scraped the air in monstrous notes, As if the speakers in them were but Goats. 7. No Escape ** Their voices scraped the air, and gentle rapping Upon the door now turned to hammer blows; They said, ¡°Come out, come out, our little sapling! Come out, or else we¡¯ll cut off all your toes!¡± I scrambled to my feet, then grabbed a bat And broke my window pane, while hammer fists Broke through the panels, claws ripped through with splat After splat of something bleeding from cut wrists. I scrambled through the broken window pane, But clawed hands grabbed my ankles, and I screamed: Their claws cut through the skin, and all the pain I felt filled up the night with cries undreamed Of in my nightmares, held in place, then lifted Aloft in two firm grasps outside my window; So looking up through tears, I saw the shifted Faces of my two parents, grinning with no Soul in their eyes: they dropped me, and I fell Down to my death below me, down to Hell! 8. My Depression *** A hell far worse than Hell itself, a hell I¡¯ve carried deep inside my weary brain, Now bleeds out through my ears and eyes like rain: A thousand hateful words have rung the knell Of deep regrets that hang on lips of death; A thousand spiteful looks have etched disdain On fading looks of cheer that still remain, Etched slowly with the passage of each breath. If words of love have lifted me to Heaven, And words of hate have dragged me down to Hell, Such words have carved out suicidal thoughts Inside this mind that slowly¡ªslowly¡ªrots: So if you think that I was just unwell, You saw not, heard not, knew not, never even Attempted to believe in The demons that have spawned inside my head, Because you thought that everything I said Was just a made-up thread Of lies! Your words of doubt have carved a tomb Inside my mind, wherein my thoughts of doom Have buried me in gloom. 9. The Neighborhood Before me was the moonlit street at night, Stretching to greater distances of shades And shadows like the yawning realm of Hades; With street lamps flick¡¯ring in and out of sight, I gazed once more upon that house of spite, Then turned my steps beyond this neighborhood That used to be the center of my childhood, Where neighbors waved, and I laughed in delight. Dear Rudy used to walk his nightly rounds Upon these sidewalks ere his life had fled; So when I heard his footfalls on the grounds, I turned and saw him walking up ahead: And so I flew and held his ghostly hand, Then walked and walked into the Borderland. 10. The Borderland The way was dark on which we walked, As though the starlit canopy of night Has faded past the edge of living sight, Enclosing us inside a realm where stalked The countless footless footfalls of the dead And creatures yet unheard and yet unseen To ears and eyes unused to such a scene, Unknown to all the knowledge in my head, And stabbing at my heart with beats of dread. Then to my eyes a gleam of ghostly green Lit up the starless canopy o¡¯erhead, Revealing a projector-lighted screen, And there my parents lying on the floor; So Rudy spoke his wisdom like a mentor: 11. His Wisdom **** ¡°By making fate our choice, the blocks of our existence Well-spent or wasted, we create our road through this, A long and winding road of endless cares, a sentence Of woe that pledges all and gives to none its bliss. When we set down these stones of mortal destiny Upon the naked bedrock of our mortal lives, Consider ere you act on that uncertainty Of endless possibilities that life contrives. Because no matter what your good or bad intentions, They matter not to Him that holds the deadly blade; The question''s not how we escape His grim attentions, For He''ll succeed upon our lives, our dues repaid: It''s how we take our steps to meet Him on the chase, Opposing fate itself when Death breathes in your face.¡± 12. The Runaway So said the ghost of Rudy as he faded Away amidst that spectral green of death, For ages passed since he had lost his breath And walked his living rounds alone, unaided By other men of courage. Here I took Those words of wisdom in my hand and chucked Them to the skies, then breathed in deep and sucked The air into my lungs and, with one look Around me, breathed out all the pent-up anguish Over my parents¡¯ fall from grace to Hades; Now shapes around me followed in the shades Of lamplit sidewalks where I used to languish With all my friends. And so I picked my feet up And ran and ran and ran, trying to speed up! 13. The Chase Running along the lamplit streets devoid Of any living footfalls save my own, Running past every house towards a void I could not see (nor moonlight could have shown), I felt the chill of something running with me As if the strides of Death himself were there, And felt the smooch of Death¡¯s queer lips to kiss me As I began to huff and puff the air. Yet as I slowed, a-panting clouds of breath, I looked behind and saw nobody nigh: Only the silence of the dead¡ªof death¡ª Was there to greet the ear, and not the eye. Behind me were the ghosts of many woes; Beyond me lay the promise of more sorrows. 14. The Alleyway ***** A movement from the corner of my eye Catches me off my guard, and when I peer Into an alleyway, the atmosphere Around me chills my forearms with a sigh Of night wind flowing through my flannel clothes; I turn around and spy the empty streets Where not a living footfall ever greets Me with the taps of someone there. The shadows That loom about me creep along the wall, Whereon I trace the almost unseen motion Of something in the distance, whose emotion Resembles that of someone¡¯s beck and call; And so I tread my steps with open eyes, Alert and wary, on the cusp of fear For anything amiss o¡¯er there or here, Expecting something underneath these skies. 15. The Knight The world was full of ghosts that night, replete With unseen footfalls striding ¡®round about me, For everywhere I looked upon the street Was nothing there (oh, reader, do not doubt me!); But on those flagstones up ahead, I halted To find my bearings on this lonesome night, And found a shadowed figure ¡®neath the vaulted Passage that blocked my way: it was a Knight In bloody armor, sword tip perched upon The grouting, pommel cupped in armored gloves, And through its visor burning eyes within That seemed to gaze out from deep pools of sin; So here I stood, when flocks of scattered doves Flew overhead, until I saw them gone. 16. The Follower I took a backward step and then another, But on my third, that stationary Knight Took three steps forward, matching mine together With heavy footfalls thumping through the night; Then all was silent after that, a mere Reverberation through the nighttime static, But when I turned and ran away from here, I chanced a glance behind me in the frantic Moments when all my courage seemed to fade Upon the sight of that surreal pursuer Gaining upon my heels! Then up ahead: Another shambling Knight without a head! Was this a figment of an addled viewer? Was it my fate to die this way? Afraid? 17. The Sleep of Fear Closing my eyes, I waited for the blows To cut me up asunder like a ham, Waiting and waiting for th¡¯ expected wham Of searing edges through my sweat-soaked clothes; I waited for a second more and froze, Expecting something horrible to slam me, Then opened up my eyes¡ªdear Christ, God damn me, I¡¯m still alive, though shaking from my toes Unto the hairs arising from my neck! All strength within my legs and knees go slack, And down upon the cobblestones I go And drift away to sleep upon my back, A shell-shocked heap of flesh, a shattered wreck Of who I was and what I used to know. 18. The Yellow-Brick Road I¡¯ve swooned, and in this swoon, perchance I¡¯ve dreamed A nightmare reaching out with withered hands, Grasping and pulling at its rusty bands Of iron chains restraining it, it seemed; But when I woke and oped my eyes, I screamed ****** And sprinted down a road of yellow brick, For there behind me rode a phantom quick As death in jangling carriage riding teamed Horses that winnowed screams and snorted fire And stomped a tune of thunder at my heels! I ran and huffed and ran and huffed in dire Straits of sheer desperation, till my knees Gave out. I slowed, collapsed, until the wheels Of that grim carriage slowly ¡®gan to ease. 19. The Grim Reaper **** Turning around, I spied the coachmen seated there, Wrapped in a shawl and wearing on its face a grinning Mask; I just stood there staring as I was beginning To fathom its intentions waiting for me here, Here in this limbo floating in suspension, where A thousand unseen horrors lay in wait, a-pinning Me here upon this sordid road and slowly winning Over my steps toward its brougham door for fear Of what was out there, lurking. Here I stepped inside And found a shawl draped over my own shoulders with A mask appearing on my face; I wrapped the wide Girth of the shawl around me, sat upon the side Seat of a bench that faced the back bench, and forthwith Found a hooded Reaper sitting there without a scythe! 20. The Scary FacesDid you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author. Ah, one by one, four other seated fiends (Two sitting right beside me, and two more Beside the Reaper) then appeared like friends All headed for a party on the dance floor: A withered Shade and Hag sat to my right, The Shade with see-through body, head, and face, The Hag with glaring eyes and grinning bite That chattered with her dentures still in place; A smelly Ghoul and grinning Cheshire Cat Were sitting by the hooded Reaper¡¯s side, Both leering at me where I gulped and sat And trembled at their glances on this ride! Ah, how I trembled at these glaring monsters, While masquerading me played the imposter! 21. The Mansion **** I saw the melancholy house slip into view While I accompanied the monsters going there, And all around me ghastly passersby did stare And laugh at me, a hapless visitor who drew His steps along their grim procession! Ah, but how Was I to know their teeming thoughts in this parade? For here I walked with monsters, walking in charade With that Grim Reaper by my side through shade and shadow! Now following along towards the looming house Atop the hill and through its creaking double doors And down the entrance hall and winding corridors, I passed beneath the shades and lamplights like a mouse About to be ensnared and trapped! Dear God, what horrors Lie there beyond those waiting double doors of terror? 22. The Mask The doors then swung into a nightmare filled With masquerading monsters! Some were dancers: Ghosts, Goblins, Witches, Vamps, and Necromancers; And some were drunks: Hags, Ghouls, and Shades have spilled The punch they gorged, while drunken Devils swilled The absinthe. All were dressed, yet none wore masks: Only the Dullahans with helmet-casques And hooded Reapers hid their face. All stilled Upon the sight of me within their midst, Accompanied by my companion Reaper Standing beside me, while the others stared; The Reaper then took off her hood amidst The gasps of shock and awe, while I was scared To look when she said, ¡°Ope your eyes, oh Sleeper . . .¡± ****** 23. The Axe-Girls I¡¯ve swooned, and in that swoon, I might have screamed it A thousand times on waking up to stairs That stretched towards me, making all the hairs Upon my neck stand up; I might have dreamed it In half-forgotten thoughts, but I esteemed it With wide-eyed paranoia at its presence Just sitting in that momentary silence; I might have, in a lighter humor, deemed it A harmless staircase with the lights turned on, Yet through its bright enclosure on the landing That rose before me as I turned my gaze, I saw a pair of little girls there standing With axes in their hands and their heads gone: I bolted down the hallway in a craze! 24. Hide and Seek ***** With beating heart, I scurry like a mouse From room to room to hide myself inside A dingy closet, while the girls outside Were stalking through the hallways of the house; With bated breath, I listen to their tread Creaking along the floor like that of felines Stalking their prey, while I slink through the confines Of hanging clothes towards the wall in dread! What¡¯s this I feel, as I now wrap my grasp Around a hard metallic sphere? A knob? And when I grasp and turn it ¡®round, a throb Of recognition thunders out a gasp Of hope, just as their steps approach my room! I push the door and pass the threshold floor Before they pull aside the closet door . . . And find myself outside an open tomb. 25. The Rat Man *** I turned around: the door into the tomb Was shut! So when I cast my wayward gaze Over the headstones through the graveyard haze, I thought I saw a shape move through the gloom Between the gravestones; down between these tombs Of ancient yore I tread my weary route In search of that elusive shape without A clue wherein this gloom of glooms It went. I threw my gaze from side to side, Looking for that fell shape, when something close Said in a whisper¡¯s breath, ¡°The mirror lied!¡± I turned around just as the sharpest dose Of searing fire erupted through my throat: And in my sights there flashed the bloody cutthroat, The Rat Man¡¯s awful gloat Laughing into my ears. I then beheld The crimson glint of his knife¡¯s edge and smelled My blood, as it expelled The screaming ghost of my blaspheming soul Out of my bloody throat onto the scroll Of Hell without parole! 26. The Clowns I then awake unto the sound of bells Now clanging out the tune of many dirges, Rousing my heartbeats through my veins in surges Of dread and pain; yet as my blood dispels Such poisons from my veins, I quell the yells And screams still raging through my ringing ears, Till (drip by drip) I cry cathartic tears Of sweet relief through fits of laughing spells. . . . That is, until more laughter from the dark Approaches me: I scramble to my feet As something over there begins to greet Me with another bout of laughter. Hark! Another fit of laughter stirs behind me, At which I find two laughers have confined me! 27. The Harlequin I dashed away from those two sordid clowns And footed it beyond their sordid laughter, Footing it through the woods until their sounds Have faded from the night. With threats of slaughter Now far behind me, I then trekked my way Into the creeping woods and saw a man In checkered costume look my way and say, ¡°Who are you, stranger? What¡¯s your sordid plan?¡± I said, ¡°I have no sordid plans or fell designs, For I have lost my way amid these woods And need a place to stay.¡± I¡¯ve said my lines; He said, ¡°I know a place of many goods For you to eat and drink.¡± He bade me follow; And so I tailed him through the wooded hollow. 28. The Bunny Man We reached his cabin in the woods, where he Invited me into his house and offered Some victuals and ready drinks for me; I then forgot the horrors that I¡¯ve suffered And stepped inside and made myself at home. I ate and drank unto my heart¡¯s content, While he informed me of the weird and gruesome Crimes of a wanted felon: ¡°The extent,¡± He said, ¡°of this man¡¯s crimes are legendary. And so, we¡¯ve dubbed this man the Bunny Man, For he commits his crimes inside the very Costume that gives his epithet, this beast-man:" And yet, so long as you stay here with me, You¡¯ll be as safe as anyone can be!¡± 29. The Pick-Axe ** I thanked him for his hospitality And told him of the horrors I have seen During the nightmares of my wayward journey, Till I grew tired with talking. Then the scene Began to change before my weary eyes, For ere I was about to fall asleep, My host began to don a queer disguise, A bunny suit, a wolf among the sheep! I sprang unto my feet, but when I did, I felt my legs give out from under me; By God, he¡¯s spiked the drink! And so amid My struggles to get up, I start to pee Myself when I saw him take up a pick From off his wall and head for me; he kicked Me over on my back and ¡®gan to stick It through my chest and abdomen, then picked My head into a pulp of skull and flesh, While through the awful pain, I screamed afresh! 30. The Axe-Man I then awoke, a-screaming out my voice Into the godless night, until the hills Echoed before me with the phantom trills Of fright; yet for a time, the awful noise Carried and changed its tune to that of boys¡¯ Laughter throughout the night; and for a time, I then descended down the grassy climb, Till something at my back left me to poise Myself. I turned around with just one glance Up at the moonlit hill and saw a man With an axe in his hand! And so I ran And screamed, a-cursing out my grave mischance To cross another killer¡¯s wayward path And dreading yet another painful bloodbath. 31. The Stalker-Man And so I ran, till all my breath was gone, And all my strength to keep on running fled, And there was something aching in my head; I then turned back and spied the field whereon Th¡¯ ungodly axe-man¡¯s stalking apparition Pursued my running steps, and there he paced With Axe in hand: I backed away in haste And flew the other way, till my condition Began to burn with all the burning in My legs, because the threat of that foul ghost Kept tailing me, a-stalking me within The drumbeats of my heart, until I lost My way, my mind collapsed in thoughts of murder A-slicing up my astral corpse asunder. 32. The Carnival And so I ran and reached a wayward route That led into a town of gloomy folks Amidst a carnival of masks and cloaks, Wherein I slowed my steps and looked about; They all wore masks and cloaks, yet all throughout The bustling thoroughfares, they skipped and pranced And played their games and yelled and laughed and danced As little children often do, no doubt. Yet when I stepped into their bustling midst, I found myself th¡¯ observed of the observers, A child within the company of strangers; Then out of nowhere manifested mist, And then arose the hint of subtle dangers Within the child-like drivel of their murmurs. 33. Santa Claws And then they said, ¡°He knows you¡¯re not asleep; He knows your stomach lurches into knots; He knows when you¡¯re awake with sinful thoughts; He knows when you¡¯re alone, you¡¯d often weep Yourself to slumber with the ghosts that lurk and creep Within your bedroom just beyond the darkness; He knows why you are crying in the stillness Beneath your bedsheets as you¡¯re counting sheep . . .¡± Yet as their words continued through the pause Of utter stillness in my mind, I closed My eyes and opened them: and there he was, The fat man dressed in red with sack exposed And showing all the bodies he¡¯s disposed Of naughty children sliced up with his claws! 34. The Missing Children ******* I closed my eyes and screamed, till I grew hoarse And wheezed and choked and coughed up wads of phlegm, Then looked around me and¡ª . . . My God, what force Of devilry had started all this mayhem? The corpses of the children, all of them, Lay strewn throughout this clearing in the trees, And when I looked, I saw each twig and stem And branch had been disturbed! But when the breeze Picked up, I felt a stab of sharp unease As something overtook my sense of dread And flooded me with fear. By slow degrees Of disbelief, I saw these children dead Arise upon their feet! And yet thereafter, I joined my long lost peers in sullen laughter! 35. The Night Parade I laughed a ghoulish laugh with them, until I had my fill of laughter. Then I greeted These undead boys and girls whose lives have treated Them with the foul mistrust of those who kill Their sense of self and strength. Adults instill The fear of God in everything, repeated A million times, until we lie defeated Upon a stage adults have built to grill Our minds and hearts with all the fears they have, Dragging us down with lies of love and care; But in this group of children lost, we save Ourselves with friendship through the cross we bear: Indeed, we might be lost, we may have strayed, But with each other, we¡¯re the Night Parade. 36. The Lost Children ********
Listen to them, the children of the night. What music they make! ¡ªBram Stoker, Dracula, Chapter II: Johnathan Harker¡¯s Journal¡ªcontinued
I. The Woods at Night We trekked on through the woods beneath the moonlit Darkness of night, pretending we were soldiers Marching along in pairs; we stopped to sit And rest ourselves on fallen logs and boulders, While two of us kept watch just yards ahead; And while I rested thus, I rubbed my shoulders And abdomen and chest and neck and head, Whereon I had sustained the lethal blows Of pick-axes and knives: the pain and bloodshed Still set my nerves a-tingling ¡®neath my clothes, Still caused my heart to thump and hands to shake Upon the very thought! But then arose The howl of wolves that made my heart to quake: And all at once, my nerves began to break! II. The Mad Dash Out of the darkness rose a thousand howls Echoing through the woods and sending us Running amidst the fray of hooting owls And panic-stricken yells! So tenuous Was our escape through all these wooded shades And shadows in our path, we ¡®gan to cuss And swear our stumbling way into the glades Without our knowing, till we stopped, dead tired Enough to drop into the realm of Hades. Yet just before we, one by one, expired Upon our feet, we looked and saw a bridge Of astral sighs appear, its shape transpired Across a yawning gulf along the drawbridge Spanning a ghastly length from ridge to ridge. III. The Bridge of Sighs The hoots and howls had stopped, and all was still And silent in the air, as if the world Around us stood at full attention, till We moved our steps across the Underworld; And on the sighing breeze, we heard the voices Of our own yelling parents that have hurled A thousand accusations that our choices Were never ours to make: we¡¯re just too young To understand that all our dreams of choice is A false impression, just the lying tongue Of countless promises to keep our eyes From getting wet when life is full of dung! So here we tread through broken dreams and lies, Contracted to the sounds of our own sighs. IV. The Confrontation Then up ahead, we found these evil tyrants Approaching us with claws and teeth, full-bared Against our passage through, because our parents Just want to keep us on probation, scared Of what they¡¯d do; they¡¯ve laid out punishments To keep us in control, and if we¡¯ve dared To make a stand and raise our voice, th¡¯ events That would transpire would make us lose our nerve And drown us in the lake of discontents. Yet through it all, we¡¯ve kept up our reserve Of courage for the prospect of our plight, Ready to take the scoldings we deserve, Ready to stand our ground with all our might, And ready to endure the dragon fight! V. The Revelation Yet in a war of words, we¡¯re far outmatched In skill to keep our heads above the water, Because they¡¯re wiser. We¡¯re just newly hatched And soft against the flood of verbal slaughter Attacking us in waves of reprimands, For what we say about ourselves won¡¯t matter; We¡¯re kids, and we must follow their demands, No matter how demeaning they may be, For we¡¯re just kids, and we¡¯re on shifting sands; They think that we can¡¯t understand or see The points they make, yet we cannot avoid The truth we see inside their eyes, for we Perceive that they were children once, destroyed And sunk into the silence of the Void. 37. The Void ********* There¡¯s something you should know about adults: They are but children lost within the void Of circumstances far from their control; They¡¯re doomed to live a life of harsh results That beat them down with things they can¡¯t avoid; They¡¯re doomed to struggle to maintain their worth When COVID-19¡¯s cut them from the payroll And added to the stress of daily insults, When deaths of loved ones make them paranoid Over their health of body, mind, and soul; They¡¯re doomed to lose their reasons for their mirth When they have witnessed their most cherished dreams Broken upon the grounds of widespread dearth Amidst the wailing silence of their screams. 38. The Awakening I screamed myself awake upon my bed, And there I lay a-breathing fast and heavy, My wayward thoughts now scattered in a bevy Of honking geese now flying south ahead Of morning¡¯s glorious light. The blood I¡¯ve shed So many times throughout this escapade Has left me cold and clammy in the shade Of autumn¡¯s sunrise. All the pangs of dread I¡¯ve faced has left me with the subtle trace Of apprehension on my nerves, my heart Still beating out the drum-like thumps that race With all the fury of a sudden start, But even this subsided once I looked Around me with no thoughts of getting spooked. 39. The End Then through the door into my bedroom came My parents calling out to me with fear Inside their eyes, and to my bitter shame, I cried and cried, because they¡¯re over here; I heard their voices (soft and comforting) Caress my ears with words so full of cares, Soothing my mind of every ghastly thing That filled and thrilled me with the stuff of nightmares, Banishing all the dread of last night¡¯s dream Into the void of calm forgetfulness, Soothing the ghost of one forgotten scream With all the love and warmth of sweet redress. So goes the cycle of my life this way, As fearful night gives way to hopeful day.
FINISH 17. The Bunny Man (Ballad) * 17. The Bunny Man (Ballad) *
1 Beware the bunny man, my dears, Beware his clever ruse, Beware the man of all our fears We hear upon the news. Because I fear for all of you Who dare to go at night, Because I fear and often rue The day he took his flight. The two eloping teens had lost Their way into the wood, Because their car had broken down With smoke inside the hood. And so they walked until they found Somebody''s cabin light Within the windows'' curtained round, To them a bless¨¦d sight. They crept and ventured with a knock, And once the door had oped, * They asked the woodsman for his help And hoped and hoped and hoped. The man acquiesced and took them in And bade them, "Sit and eat. I want to know what happened, so I''ll get you on your feet." The girl could only blush in shame T'' explain the reason why They came into the woods so late; The boy said with a lie, "We got a flat a couple miles Away from here, that''s all; We need your help to have it fixed Or give someone a call." The woodsman looked at both of them And found the teens sincere, Agreeing to be of some help, Then said, just to be clear, "You two should count yourselves in luck To find me over here, Because these woods are dangerous, More so than they appear. "There was a prison complex here In nineteen-seventy, When Fairfax County was a small But cozy place to be. "But all that changed when it was closed To make the place ''secure,'' When every inmate there was moved T'' another place of cure. "The transfer of the inmates went Along without a hitch, Until the transfer bus had crashed Into a hidden ditch. "Some inmates died upon the hit That crumpled up the bus, But others fled into the night And caused a lot of fuss. "And off they ran with all the speed Their legs could strain to bear, But one by one they all were caught, Save one to our despair. "The parties searched throughout the woods But could not find their man, And pretty soon they all gave up, Abandoning their plan. "Within the passing days emerged So many carcasses Of eaten rabbits locals found That caused them much distress. "The rabbit carcasses were found A-hanging from the trees, Like ghastly Christmas ornaments A-swinging in the breeze! "And so another search was called To find their missing guy And found to their astonishment A person''s corpse¡ªoh my! "What''s worse, his mutilated corpse Was hanging from the tree, A ghastly Christmas ornament A-swinging by his knee! "Authorities redoubled all Their efforts to arrest The man they dubbed the ''bunny man'' And put the case to rest. "Their searching found his hiding place, A simple lodge that stored A bunny suit with rabbit ears And rabbit corpses gored. "But they could never find the fiend If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. That carried out these deeds And so were forced to give it up, Until they got more leads. "But soon the killer''s trail grew cold And nothing could be done, And so they gave it up for good, Because the fiend had won! "Beware the bunny man, my dears, Beware his clever ruse, Beware the man of all our fears We hear upon the news." 2 The teens had awful chills of fear Run up and down their spines, While in their hearts they felt each pulse That fear of death divines. The two were nearly frozen stiff In shock and awe and fear, So as their host he calmed them down By offering good cheer. And once they were placated thus, He spun another tale, A tale the two could much relate, A taller tale that they''ll Remember when they leave his place; He said, "I still believe Those urban legends parents tell Their kids before they leave. "Those warning tales of lovers'' lane Are every bit as true As apple pie and whipping cream, Although they rarely screw." "I''m not too sure we want to know," The girl protested shame, "And why should you relate to us So personal a claim?" He said, "You need to tell your kids To never venture out Into the woods alone at night, Or even take this route. "Just seven years ago, I''ve heard, A couple just like you Had come into a lovers'' lane Not far from here, it''s true. "I''ve heard that when they fooled around The two were heedless of The danger that was near them both, As they were making love. "Indeed, a tragic tale, I know; But I knew more than most Of what became of these two fools, As I am wont to boast. "Their names were Marianne and Stan, Or so the legends say, Who heard a noise outside their car; So Stan asked her to stay "Inside the car and lock the doors, While he checks out the noise That interrupted them that night¡ª Ah, such are foolish boys! "And so poor Marianne must wait, So wait and wait did she, Until the minutes passed and passed The devil''s hour of three. ** "With every hour that had elapsed, She worried all the more For her brave boyfriend to return Without a scratch or sore. "But soon enough the slumber came And overtook her will To stay awake and stay alert, For Stan was out there still. "And as her senses dulled with sleep, She thought she heard a brush Above her head upon the roof, Mistaken for a thrush. "And so she slept a peaceful sleep Until the morning after, When she awoke to find police, Impending some disaster. "Confused and scared and bleary-eyed, She nearly panicked when (Police escorting her away), She turned around then¡ª "She saw her lover hanging there Above the very car She slept in, hanging from his knees, A grisly sight bizarre! "So now she knew what she had heard When drifting off to sleep¡ª Her lover''s fingers rapping on The roof when counting sheep! "Could you imagine such a shock, Or how it must have seemed? They say she went insane with fright And screamed and screamed and screamed. "They say the bunny man had struck And made police the blame, Who could not catch their wily man Of legendary fame. "The words I speak are very true, As true as murdered Stan; So never venture over here: Beware the bunny man!" 3 The man concludes his anecdote That freaked the couple out, Their faces pale and wet with sweat¡ª So creepy was this lout. *** And yet the man, with all his guile, Had calmed them down a bit, So that they need not have to fear Their host''s eccentric wit. So after they complete their meals, He offered them a place To sleep inside his cozy room, And closed it just incase, To keep the noises down for them To slumber peacefully; And so they slept within their arms, Face to face, he to she. But little does the couple know The danger they are in, Because their host had other thoughts Of such horrendous sin. He donned his bunny suit and ears And took his favorite axe From off the shelf, preparing for The latest of attacks; He''d give them both their just deserts, He''d give them each their whacks; He''d butcher them upon the bed And stuff them both in sacks. And then he''d carry both of them And string them up like rabbits, A-swinging in the breezy air¡ª Such were his practiced habits. So in he crept with all the stealth Of silent ghostly tread And raised his arm to give the blows¡ª And filled the night with dread. They say that you could almost hear The screams that fateful night, And when the screaming wanes and dies, You''ll hear his laughter''s spite. Because I fear for all of you Who dare to go at night, Because I fear and often rue The day he took his flight. Beware the bunny man, my dears, Beware his clever ruse, Beware the man of all our fears We hear upon the news.
FINISH 18. Lady Bloodstone (Sestinas) 18. Lady Bloodstone (Sestinas)
1. Murder The Lady Bloodstone woke up on her bed Of roses bright and beautiful, and yet The memory still haunts her with such thoughts As did bedevil ladies of her rank, For she was beautiful¡ªtherefore, to be Assailed by time and guilt for hidden crimes. And what, you ask, were Lady Bloodstone''s crimes? They were the crimes of passion on her bed, Whereon a thousand sweet devotions be Despoiled upon the lips of lust, and yet She still retains the honors of her rank By keeping secret all her brooding thoughts. And what, you ask, were Lady Bloodstone''s thoughts? They were the thoughts of someone else''s crimes: Her husband''s sweet caresses all were rank With all the perfumes of another''s bed, For she heard rumors of his whoring, yet She vowed in silent vengeance yet to be. But how, you ask, could Lady Bloodstone be So calculating in her vengeful thoughts? She proved herself a worthy actress, yet The thought of his unfaithful whoring crimes Bedeviled her love-making in his bed: She was a jealous wife of noble rank. She smelled the other woman''s perfume, rank With all the stench a jealous wife could be Forced to endure upon their squealing bed, For in her mind were such ungodly thoughts That even her bad husband''s many crimes Were small compared to hers enacted yet! Ah, there''s not hell like women scorned, and yet The proper duties of her lofty rank Helped her to hide th'' intentions of her crimes, For she was sly, a vixen yet to be Proven with evidence to glean her thoughts Upon her latest tryst upon his bed. Envoi And yet when night fell o''er their sleepless bed, She acted out the rank sins of her thoughts With vengeful knife to stop his crimes to be. 2. Masquerade Now Lady Bloodstone pulled a masquerade Over the eyes of those who thought they knew Her well, her sobs and aspect full of loss And pain to anyone with eyes that see, Yet all her skill at method acting proved But an illusion! She had all the arts The Devil could have granted, all the arts To hide a truth most foul in masquerade, And all the arts of subtlety that proved Herself the prey of circumstance. Who knew Or could have known the the grisly truth? Or see Or could have seen through her well-acted loss? Ah, no one could distinguish ''twixt the loss Of guileless death from such ungodly arts. So for a time, she went to look and see The wench who was her husband''s masquerade During the night before his death. Who knew What thoughts were lurking in her head? She proved Herself a sly and worthy actress, proved Herself a saint in others'' eyes, whose loss Attracted sympathies from those who knew Her well, but then our Lady Bloodstone''s arts Were tested at this wench''s masquerade! This Lady Weston, she would meet and see Why her late spouse would leave her side to see This other woman. Lady Weston proved To be her equal in this masquerade, Attracting gazes were she went, the loss Of which aroused our lady''s bloody arts With similar intentions. Ah, who knew What devilries our Lady Bloodstone knew? Who could foresee the consequence? Or see Into the mind of someone skilled in arts Too subtle for a law court to have proved Lady Bloodstone guilty of a second loss While at another woman''s masquerade? Envoi Only one person knew her masquerade, Or could see through our lady''s cunning arts: Lady Weston proved it was a bloody loss! 3. Detection During the masquerade, the Lady Weston Espied the Lady Bloodstone with her lorgnette * Within the crowd below, and when she faced This rival paramour of her late lover, She took the lady''s hand and kissed it well And, like her rival, played her own charade. And what, you ask, was Weston''s own charade? When her dear love had died, the Lady Weston Suspected Lady Bloodstone''s actions well Before she spied her rival with her lorgnette, For from the lips of her departed lover She knew the Lady Bloodstone was two-faced And sly and jealous of his trysts. Now faced With someone else''s consummate charade, She sought t'' avenge the death of her dear lover By talking with that lady. Lady Weston Talked to the Lady Bloodstone, placed her lorgnette Down by her side, and took her upstairs well Beyond the hearing of her guests and well Beyond the confines of the ballroom, faced With mirth. The Lady Weston dropped her lorgnette On the floor and dropped her own charade And questioned Lady Bloodstone. Lady Weston Now said, "I must confess, I had a lover, A sweet affair with someone''s husband, lover That he was, and we both knew him well." The Lady Bloodstone eyed the Lady Weston With horrified expression as she faced This very wench! She dropped her own charade And, with a spiteful glare, took up her lorgnette And took a blade from out of her own lorgnette And stabbed the blasted wench that took her lover As Lady Weston screamed out, "Your charade¡ª" Attracting everyone''s attention well Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.In hearing, Lady Bloodstone now was faced With imminent detection! Lady Weston Envoi Took out the lorgnette knife as Lady Bloodstone faced The crowd, and Lady Weston said, "Know well, Lady Bloodstone, your husband''s lover! Your charade . . ." 4. Pursuit The Lady Bloodstone ran away, found out At last, and sprinted through the darkened halls Of Lady Weston''s mansion, where her servants Attempted to prevent her wild escape, But she ran with the Devil''s speed that night, And right behind her flew her guilty conscience. In desperation, dogged by her own conscience, She sprinted through the corridors and out Beyond the entrance door towards the night, While all the guests within the winding halls Recoiled in awe at such a fleet escape, And everyone from guests to lowly servants Then crossed themselves. The once pursuing servants Returned with pallid faces, every conscience Reeling in shock a such a quick escape That they began to fill the halls throughout With tales of wicked witchcraft in the halls And out into the Devil''s lair of night. One servant said he heard her screams that night Resounding through the halls, and other servants Said that as they dogged her through the halls, They saw a wight pursue her guilty conscience ** With premonitions of her doom, and out Beyond the gate where she made her escape, One guest said that he saw her wild escape On horseback, galloping like mad that night, And still some other guests have sworn it out That they had seen her husband''s ghost. Now servants And guests alike, to soothe their frantic conscience, Called up a Catholic priest to bless those halls With holy water, yet these very halls Still echoed with the screams of that escape, The screams of Lady Bloodstone''s guilty conscience Haunting that night and every other night Since then. Now all the superstitious servants Soon quitted their own stations and turned out Envoi Of those ungodly halls and, both in and out, Making their own escape, these frightened servants, Whose conscience tells them to beware the night. 5. Overcast When Lady Bloodstone found herself within The confines of an alleyway unknown To her, she screamed and filled the night with terrors Unleashed like death knells through the air. The skies O''erhead were filled with misty overcast, And everything about her lurked and crept And capered in the shadows. As she crept Along, the tapping of her steps within The confines of the alley overcast Her thoughts with specters, demons, things unknown Upon the earth or in the daytime skies, That every sound enthralled her full of terrors Within this alley. Oh, what awful terrors There be that spied or peered and stalked or crept Within this purgatory under skies *** Clouded in black and gray? Somewhere within These parts, she thought, was something now unknown Yet still familiar in the overcast, Something that beckoned through the overcast Of her own guilty conscience. All the terrors Of her ungodly flight now fled, unknown Were all the things ahead of her that crept On half-heard footfalls, and from deep within Her heart there manifested in the skies Remorseful tears of rain come from those skies. Now dwelling on her sins, the overcast Without now matched the overcast within, While premonitions of unfounded terrors Capered and dashed and hid and stalked and crept Before her steps along this place unknown, Until she saw ahead a space unknown, Perchance an exit from these bitter skies Of guilt and pain. So off ran, then crept Out from the alley and the overcast, But now she stopped and viewed with mounting terrors Something ahead of her that moved within Envoi This foggy street unknown, something within These mists brought from her skies of looming terrors, Something that crept out through the overcast . . . 6. Ghoul Out in the foggy street, there came the form Of Lady Bloodstone''s dear late husband, where His apparition glided on the street; Leaping for joy, she ran towards her husband But stopped upon a closer look, for he Had changed into monstrous shade¡ªa ghoul! Yet in her addled thoughts, she saw no ghoul Or ghost or other kind of shade, his form Like that of his original, and he Himself seemed as alive, she thought, but where¡ª Oh, where within this world¡ªhad her dear husband Been to without her company? What street Had he been walking to and fro? What street Had he been visiting? she thought. This ghoul, The moving image of her murdered husband, Then stopped and looked upon the standing form Of her before him, saying, "Where, oh where Have you gone to, my mistress?" But when he Stretched out his withered hand towards her, he Saw his lady back away along the street, But with placating words, he said, "Oh, where Do you think you are going, Lady-Ghoul?" The Lady said, "I do not know the form Of my late lover, my unfaithful husband "Whose actions soiled the honored name of husband! Who is this walking shade? Are you but he Whose hands caressed another woman''s form? Is this the very place¡ªthe very street¡ª You took on your last tryst, you awful ghoul? Was this the very route you traveled where "You met your end before you reached her, where You walked with yearning heart and loins, oh husband? You''re nothing! You nothing but a ghoul!" She turned her steps away; but then t'' was he Who overtook her ere she reached the street And clapped her body in his arms, the form Envoi He''d loved in bed, where both took up one form, The husband taking her along the street And grinned at her. "A ghoul, you say?" said he. 7. Canal "I am your ghoul, and you''re my murderer," He said, "and now we both share equal parts In infamy!" And so he took her down The winding streets towards the waters edge, Where gondolas were floating by. Awaiting Inside one gondola, a gondolier Now waved him over; then the gondolier Stretched out his hand towards his murderer, Taking her hand within his own, awaiting Her husband to come in. The ghoulish parts Of his gray face now took her to the edge Of sanity, for in her mind, deep down Towards the beatings of her heart, deep down Into her loins, she saw the gondolier And husband shared a stark resemblance, edge For edge and line for line. The murderer Now put her hands upon her eyes, the parts Of which now cursed her mind with sight, awaiting Inside the darkness of her hands, awaiting Th'' inevitable truth she knew deep down Into the marrow of her bones and parts Unknown: her husband and the gondolier Were doppelg?nger brothers. "Murderer!" They said in unison. Her nerves on edge, She shifted her own body to the edge Close by the water, silently awaiting Her chance to take the plunge. "This murderer, You say," she said, "did she ever go down These thoroughfares to meet a gondolier At this late hour within these haunted parts?" Her husband said, "My mistress took these parts Alone at night towards the water''s edge And met my brother here, the gondolier, Yet you were stingy in your acts, awaiting Myself to come to you at night. So down Upon my brother''s lap, you murderer, Envoi "And sink your hips upon his parts, oh murderer! Just as you plunged your knife''s edge up and down, So shall the gondolier and I, where Hell''s awaiting!"
FINISH