Tales of the Shattered Crystal
Tales of the Shattered Crystal
By Bonnie Mutchler
Copyright 2013 by Bonnie Mutchler
Cover design copyright Joleene Naylor 2009. All rights reserved.
Cover Fonts by Larabie Fonts (https://www.larabiefonts.com/ )
***
The Shattered Crystal
The crystal spoke
Before it broke,
And it only said one word,
And each man there
Was filled with terror
At what he thought he'd heard.
For each man's brain
Heard clear his name
Shrieked to the pit of doom;
They knew damn well
They were bound for hell
As they clustered in the tomb.
The air was scorched
By the flaming torch
That was fastened
to the wall,
And shadows pranced
In a demon's dance
O'er the shattered crystal ball.
Then a pale smoke rose
And they huddled close
In a trembling, cowering mass.
Yet they never moved,
Their eyes stayed glued
To the shards of broken glass.
Dense grew the smoke,
They began to choke,
Their eyes ran blood and water.
When a light appeared
They followed it
Like lambs toward the slaughter.
Twisting 'round and 'round,
The path wound down
Deep in the black earth's bowels;
Through the murky gloom
To the distant tune
Of a werewolf's horrid howl.
And they marched for days
Through the damp, dark caves,
Neither looking left nor right,
'Til at last they came
To a wall of flame
That swallowed up the light.
Their eyes grew wide,
They were terrified,
And they babbled in their fear.
Their leaden feet
Shuffled aimlessly
Around the cavern, drear.
Behind their backs
A harsh voice cracked
And they whirled around in awe.
As brown as wood,
Before them stood
What looked like an old jackstraw.
He was gaunt and bent
But there showed a glint
Like an ice needle in his eye.
His face was creased
As the bark on trees
When they touch the purple sky.
His long beard flowed
O'er his tattered robe
That had once been trimmed in wealth,
And if one could gage
He was old as age;
As old as life itself.
With a voice like wind
He beckoned them,
They dared not disobey;
For his face was dark,
His gaze was sharp,
And he held them in his sway.
They railed at fate
As they passed the gate
To march through the wall of flames.
He stood at the head
Of these fools he led
And he called each one by name.
Down the hollow halls
With rock for walls,
They walked for days and days,
'Cross muddy lakes
Without a break,
Through hellish passageways.
They cursed and blessed
And begged for rest,
But there was no mercy shown.
In their ragged clothes
They nearly froze
And were weary to the bone,
Still he drove them forth,
Never strayed from course,
Never stopped nor slowed the pace.
As the hours crawled
Inside these walls,
He led them on in haste.
A month, a day
Stumbled away,
They were barely living then.
All bruised and torn,
Their hair unshorn,
Their bodies gaunt and thin.
They prayed for death
To give them rest,
But the demon never came;
He was at their sides
And he leered and jibed,
But their souls he would not claim.
'Twas the twelfth of Naught
when at last they stopped
In front of a great slab door,
Ornately carved,
With heaven's chart
Cut boldly on one board.
The old man laughed,
Then raised his staff
And the great door sprung aside.
He waved them in
With a bow and grin;
They slowly stepped inside.
The enormous room,
Round like a moon,
Glowed with a lustrous light.
The high arched walls
Rose pale and tall,
To an almost dizzying height.
They were trimmed in gold
And icy cold,
And the only items there
Were a box of gold
On a pedestal
And a shimmering golden chair.
They dropped their jaws
Standing in awe,
For they could not comprehend
The dazzling sight
That met their eyes
When they looked at the old man.
He'd become a youth,
His face was smooth,
His blond hair waved and flowed.
A cape of black
Hung 'round his neck,
And his rags were a fine white robe.
He undid the lock
On the golden box
And lifted up the lid.
His thin hands shook
As he raised the book
From inside where it was hid.
They clustered 'round,
And sitting down
On the floor, there was no whisper.
Then he took his seat
And began to read
"The Tales of the Shattered Crystal"...
***
By The North Gate
By the north gate when the clock strikes twelve,
Come silent and careful; look ye out well,
For the hooded figure that stands alone
Looking beyond the walls of stone.
If silent and steady the watch is kept,
You might, though the mist, see the figure met.
He lifts her up on his golden steed
And they disappear among the trees.
By the north gate when the clock strikes two,
And the grass and flowers are soaked in dew,
Stand quiet and patient, ye'll surely see
The lovers return on the golden steed.
He lowers the maid with a hasty kiss,
Then man and horse are lost in mist.
Like a young bird, her tender heart soars
As she disappears through the back door.
***
Cry To The Night Wind
There is a winter comin' o'er me,
I feel it deep inside my bones.
There is no purpose now to hold me;
My time has come, I'm goin' home.
I lift my glass to all my comrades;
Their faces dim and fade from view.
Though many miles have grown between us,
&nb
sp; My thoughts have always been with you.
Here's to the ones we left behind,
Where we'd have rather spent our time,
And so we cry......
Cry to the night wind.
My heart is heavy as I leave this place;
The snow is cold and so am I.
I can't forget what I've seen here;
I can't forget the friends who died.
So take my gun and take my dagger,
But take my nightmares from me, too.
These memories forever haunt me,
Though I am coming home to you.
For the ones who seek the night,
The ones who stand and fight,
Let freedom cry........
Cry to the night wind.
*****
Day And Night
Cold she lays sleeping upon her bed,
Dark in her beauty against a white spread;
While fiery and golden he rides 'cross the sky,
The Prince of Daylight, the Empress of Night.
And how did they come to be what they are?
A grey witch wished it upon a star.
She once had a lover, handsome and fair,
With emerald eyes and chestnut hair.
A gallant young warrior, brave and bold,
And she loved him with all her heart and soul.
He swore to her he'd have no other
Then took the dark maid for his lover.
But she waited long and studied well,
'Til at last she found the perfect spell.
She whispered it low in the hell-broth's steam
And it turned from black to a murky green
That rose in a column up to the sky
Then it struck the star that was next to die.
Green flames engulfed the blackened ball
As it began its fatal fall.
She shrieked her curse as it streaked above her;
Two beams shot forth and struck the lovers.
She smiled to herself for the taste was sweet,
At last her revenge was complete.
For when one's awake, the other must sleep;
Daylight and Nighttime, cursed ever to meet
For only one moment each dusk and dawn,
Then aching and longing, the moment is gone.
***
Home
"Have you come home at last, my love?"
She asked him at the door.
"Oh, I've come home to you, my love,
I'll leave you nevermore."
But in the distance the drums were heard
O'er the deadly cannon roar
And he said, "I cannot turn away,
So I leave to fight a war."
"Have you come home at last, my love?"
She asked him at the door.
"Yes, I've come home to you, my love,
To leave you nevermore."
But war, it is a costly thing,
And it leaves a country poor,
So he said, "I'll go to the city
Where there's work that pays much more."
"Oh, I have come home, my lovely one."
He shouted from the gate.
"Well, perhaps you have come home," she said,
"But you've come home too late.
All I have done since the day we were wed
Is to sit by the window and wait.
I might have expected to sit there a year,
But I never expected eight."
"But this is my home, my lovely one,"
He told her from the door.
"That might have been true many years ago,
But it's not your home anymore.
I've tended it and I've cared for it,
Mended cracks in the plaster and floor,
So you move along to the part you know best,
The other side of the door.
***
In One Blind Moment
In one blind moment he drew the gun
He'd hung so recently on his hip,
And in that movement crushed his world
With the pressure of one fingertip.
And all his dreams lay cold and dead
Upon the dirty, windswept street.
As dead as the man who called him out
And now lay bloody at his feet.
As cold as the cuffs slapped on his wrists
And the barrel of the sheriff's gun
As he led him silently to wait
For the punishment for what he'd done.
In one blind moment he drew the gun
That sealed his fate forever more;
For once the verdict had come down
They sent him to hell through a trap door.
***
In The Glade
With light hearted laughter
We dance here and after,
In time to the fiddler's tune.
As in days of yore,
Like our parent's before,
We go prancing out under the moon.
And we stay there all night
'Neath the pale moonlight,
With never a thought but for fun.
There isn't a care
In the heart of one there,
For we leave them behind until dawn.
The fairies don't mind
Our spending some time
In their glade, they just join right in,
As we dance 'round the flowers
For hours and hours,
The woods echoing with our din.
***
It
Shrouded in mist,
I heard it hiss
Long before it struck.
With it's tongue of flame
It took dead aim,
And I cursed at lady luck.
The wraiths all screamed
'Til it almost seemed
The heavy air would shatter,
But with weapon drawn
I staggered on,
My body bent and battered.
In the dim grey fog,
The stench of bog
Was a deathly sickening smell,
That rose up strong
And lingered long
In my nose and mouth as well.
I dared not speak,
For I heard it breathe,
Unseen, somewhere behind me;
While hovering close
Were those ghastly ghosts,
Flitting silent 'round the trees.
With a rumbling roar
It attacked once more,
And I swung my heavy blade.
Though it struck my arm,
Still I did it harm,
For I heard the howl it made.
Sweat ran in my eyes,
Though my skin was ice,
My heart throbbed in my ears.
All my muscles ached,
My wounds felt baked,
But my mind was sharp and clear.
I could hear the crack
As the dry twigs snapped
While it shuffled in the murk,
And I could but wait,
Put my trust in fate,
As I wondered where it lurked.
With a choking snort,
A gulp and roar,
It's head rose in the gloom,
And I nearly died
When I saw it's size,
My heart was filled with doom.
It was ten feet high,
With blood red eyes;
One ear hung, nearly severed.
It's face was green,
It's countenance, mean,
It's fangs dripped yellow slaver.
While through the fog,
Howled the ghosts like dogs,
As they shrieked in their delight,
For they wished me dead
And they craved my head,
But I swore they'd have a fight.
They were after the stones
I stole from their bones
In the temple of Daw Chit.
I pressed the chest
Against my breast
One moment, then I dropped it.
I prepared to fight,
To live or die,
What e'er the fates allowed me,
As the Keeper stood
In that misty wood
Determined to defeat me.
It lowered it's head,
The ooze it bled
Gushed from the half-severed ear.
Then at me it came,
It's tongue of flame
Scorched my flesh as it crawled near.
I raised my blade,
And I felt half brave
So I stepped out to meet it,
Though at just one glance
I knew 'twas no chance
That I could ever beat it.
Still, I meant to try,
So with wild cry,
I threw caution to the wind,
Gripped the hilt and lunged
And the sword blade plunged
Knuckle deep at the breastbone's end.
It was caught off guard
And I'd hit it hard,
It was struggling for breath.
A thick green goo
Hid my arm and shoe,
But it still was far from death.
It jerked upright,
Prepared to fight
With everything it had.
With it's fangs it bit,
With it's tail it hit;
It was wild and crazy mad,
And I dodged and danced,
Used my sword when the chance
Presented itself to me.
I know that fight
Must've been a sight
For the ghosts up in the trees.
They shrieked for the beast
And their rage increased
Every time I made a cut.
Their vehement screams
Still haunt my dreams
When the blade sliced through its gut.
It lay on the ground
Not making a sound,
But the haunts made quite a din
As they howled and cursed
And I knew their thirst
For my blood would never end.
So, stashing the chest
Beneath my vest,
I raced from the haunted wood.
I headed for home
'Cross the ocean's foam
On the fastest ship I could.
***
My Mison
He heard his name called in his dreams
By a lady clothed in shadow,
And while her long gaze held his breath,
She lifted him through life and death;
The fiery ice of passion's throes,
Into the wind and moonlight's glow.
Through the rolling mist she beckoned,
Her arms stretched wide to welcome him,
To press him gently to her breast;
In warmth and safety give him rest,
A respite from the dark and grim
Though perched upon disaster's rim.
Then pale the shadow slowly grew
And rising, flung him from her hold;
The darkness pressed on every side,
So thick it crushed out all his life
And left him whimpering and cold,
Lost in the void of a tale untold.
***
Oh, My Sweet William
Oh, my sweet William,
Why did they have to do this?
They didn't have to burn the farm
Or murder you, my husband.
Oh, my sweet William,
They didn't have to do this.
They didn't have to take our sons,
Disgrace our only daughter.