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Paladin's Destiny
| Open Poetry #29 |
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Paladin's Destiny |
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ThunderMage Senior Member
since 2002-06-20
Posts 812Canada 
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Dark armies rally 'round the castle, Knights await their Holy Master; Clerics call for help tonight, But no matter what, the evil moves faster. The King calls forth his cavaliers, Sending the noble fighters forth, But even as they fall, the sound comes; Hooves of a horse approach from the north. "The hero has come!" The clerics cry out, Tears of joy filling the cavaliers' eyes; The evil knows not the power it faces! Everyone's in for a big surprise. Weary champions rise once again, Trav'llers and thieves come to see the fight; The hero has truly heard their call, And comes home again to offer his might. With his mystical mace and magical shield, The paladin rides from the northern sun; The royal wizard's prophecy has come to pass, The war against the vile sorcerers is already won. A swipe of his mace and a vile mage falls, Screams of agonizing death fill the air; The night is won thanks to the crusader, And as he fights, all sorcerers die there. When all's said and done, and the battle's at a close, There's no need to thank him, he's happy to defend, And he then turns on his steed and rides off with blinding speed, Into the night, a hero to the end. A lone thief and his trained wyvern Follow the hero to a village in the east; Is he truly a hero or a rat in a cage? Is he truly a man, or is he a beast? And as the hero stops at one of the houses, And dismounts his trusted horse once again, The thief senses something unknown to many heroes, A deep-rooted hatred of one who caused pain. But it's soon forgotten - he approaches the house, And knocks quietly on the on the brown wooden door; The thief senses now a deep-rooted love, One that'll endure forever more. The door slowly opens, a young lady inside Takes the hero's hand and draws him into a warm embrace; The thief's never seen such affection before, Especially from this skilled Holy fighting ace. An innocent kiss sets his soul on fire, The hero's heart races as his eyes grow wide, And with but a few words exchanged between the two, She leads her hero, by the hand, inside. Peeking through the window, the thief is amazed; What he sees in the house, he'd never have believed! You see weary trav'ller, he saw innocence again, A true hero who inspired the noblest of thieves. The thief's heart can take no more of this display, And without hesitation he and the wyvern again fly; A town far away beckons to the thief now, And as this love fills his heart he begins to cry. He lands in the town where his own true love lives, And leaps from his wyvern and onto the ground; He's found his true power, his destiny's clear, And now he must spread all this love around. He too knocks upon a nearby wooden door, And his young lady love invites him inside; The light in the room casts no shadows for him, No place for this lone thief to run or to hide. But hiding's for cowards, and it's no time for fear; The time of running is over now, chief. How did I come to this story, you ask? By my leather armour and dagger, can't you tell I'm a thief? Yes, I'm that thief, I kid you not. So why am I here and not where I belong? For the paladin, the timing was right, But for me the timing for such love seemed wrong. But it's coming slowly, and proving so true; Still, when I see her, my heart always swells. How far would I go for her love, you now ask? Why, good sir, I'd gladly face a thousand Hells! My wyvern? He's around in this village somewhere. He protects it with steely claws and fiery breath; All who would seek to harm anyone here Would truly face a most agonizing death. You see, as my wyvern burns their flesh, My dagger would taste their throats with its steel. What pain would I take just to be in her arms? In her arms, there's no pain in this world I could feel. Return to her home? It's across the street. I often visit the inn for so many chances to steal; I rob blind the wealthy nobles and give their gold away, I give it to the poor, whose need of it is more real. What became of the paladin? Nobody knows. They say he and his love were married that day; My love won't leave me, I've no need yet of rings. She won't be the one that got away. You ask of my plan to keep my love clear? Gifts from a pure heart can take a man far. I've been caught and beaten by the guards before, I've been wounded, and I've seen many a battle scar. But all the arrows that have pierced my flesh, All the monks beating me with their martial arts, They all seem as nothing with the power I wield, For you see, a very different arrow pierced my heart. Believe what you will trav'ller, though my story's true. Your gold? I've not seen it. I may steal, but I won't lie, Just as my dagger won't fail me in a pinch, And just as my love for her will ne'er die. I must go now trav'ller, I've taken enough time, Though you were right to suspect me - I've taken my loot; I see by your spell book that you're a wizard yourself, And I have your dagger hidden in my boot. I'm an honest thief, at least give me that. I've no need of forgiveness if you've no will to give; As long as I always have her on my side, I'll never lose my will to steal, or to live. Keep the dagger, you say? You've no need of a blade? Yes, weary wizard, your staff is enough. Here's the spell book I stole, but why spare a thief? Yes, I agree, the night has been rough. You've a similar tale? Were you there that night? Yes! I remember now, you stood by his majesty's side; It seems I can run to the ends of this Earth, But there's ne'er a safe place for a thief to hide. Rest tonight, royal wizard, my friend; You've a long journey ahead in the morning. Beware of my wyvern, as he can smell magic, He never trusted spells, just to give fair warning. You'd not slay my beast? You're truly kind, And wisdom such as yours is rare in this town. The sorcerers? Few survived, and between Heaven and Hell, Should they challenge us again, they'll all go straight down. So with a puff of my pipe and a song from my flute, I'm off once again to my angel from above; If I'm needed, I'll be there; you've no need to call, And my strength will be greater through the power of love. What is life without poetry and adventure? |
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| © Copyright 2003 Liam Hall - All Rights Reserved | |||
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Rdz9 Member
since 2003-03-16
Posts 142MT, USA |
Now that is an amazing story... well done, much enjoyed. Rob One in a sea of millions has the power to change the world... |
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Gentle Spirit Member Patricius
since 2000-10-09
Posts 13989 |
The title caught my eye and I was amazed as I read. Wonderful story, great writing. Very well done! |
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the_loner_23 Member Ascendant
since 2002-06-08
Posts 5479Jacksonville, Florida, USA |
Awesome poem Cold hands means a warm heart |
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Magicmystery Senior Member
since 2002-02-13
Posts 821Windsor, Ontario, Canada |
{Gaping in AWE} YOU ROCK!!!! ------------------------------------------------- "What pain would I take just to be in her arms? In her arms, there's no pain in this world I could feel." ------------------------------------------------- I soooo much loved those lines especially.... Made me say WOW... you've been doing reps on your poetry muscles.... This was too incredible a read for mere words. zip... Into my treasure chest it goes!!!! Sherry  [This message has been edited by Magicmystery (11-02-2003 01:42 AM).] |
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Magicmystery Senior Member
since 2002-02-13
Posts 821Windsor, Ontario, Canada |
welllll.... see how we plummet!?!? This poem is very much deserving of a second look...despite the length... Here's hoping  Sherry [This message has been edited by Magicmystery (11-03-2003 03:00 PM).] |
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Susan Caldwell Member Rara Avis
since 2002-12-27
Posts 8348Florida |
Intense! Well done! "if you won't let me fall for you |
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