"Epyllion I" to be published

I earlier reported that "Poem XII" had been successful in this year's Poetry Rivals competition, having been selected for publication at the end of November.

I am further pleased to announce that "Epyllion I - Felnah consoles the forlorn Sókan" (reprinted below) will also be published by Forward Press in their anthology Forward Press Regionals 2010 - The World Is Your Oyster.

The collection is set to be printed on 31 December 2010.


Epyllion I - Felnah consoles the forlorn Sókan

"Come, dear warrior, Son of the Light,
What ails you so? Gone is Hixen's Blight,
And the world rejoices at your valiant deeds!
Do you not walk as hero? No other's feet
Shall ever tread where you met plight."

So said Felnah, ascended from Her Nether Realm.
Replied Sókan, lifting his weary head, removing his helm:

"O Goddess, Guardian of Those Who Slumber,
You speak no lie: all the enemy I have left asunder.
The righteous have triumphed and the benighted earth
Shall be as it was—all will welcome again hope and mirth.
But Agánn has fallen! and I feel heavy and sombre."

The Lady of Shadows took pity upon hearing this,
And told Sókan of the fate of Agánn, comrade now missed:

"The indomitable Agánn: loyal friend, warrior bold;
His brand will be ever sheathed, his body ever cold.
But pine not for him: he now sleeps the Blissful Sleep,
Dreams the Eternal Dream, and reposes where I keep.
There he will be when on you death begins its hold."

This uplifted the battle-worn Sókan and assuaged his grief
As he watched Felnah depart, soundless, like master thief.

M.M. — Februarius MMX

Evensong I - My Lord the Sun

With such momentousness I witness Your departure, my Lord the Sun
Your reign, Day, is done

At the top of the world did You erstwhile sit
Upon Your throne that touched aught and all
But Your descent, roaring steps down the once-azure stair, has come

Look how Your retinue, Your court the Clouds, turns as You fall!
The golds and somewhat reds that I once glimpsed in a dream

Your exhalation is no timid thing, no quiet whimper
You die as You lived!

Lord! where is it that You go?
Could I not follow?
Could I not wend my way along the trail You have left set afire?

I wish I could collect all the amber You scatter
—in the welkin, Your unreachable abode
—on the coldening ground upon which I tread
—on my mortal skin, in my eyes that You blind, in my yearning heart

How I love You, my Lord! Father!
All that You have bequeathed, all that You have taught
Leave me not!
There is still much for You to do, to give

The sky: it grows pale, leaden; it darkens!
Shall I see You again?
Will You ever dispel this oncoming shade?

The warmth! the warmth!: it leaves as You leave, Lord!
The light! the light!: wherefore must it belittle itself so?

The Clouds: do They not entreat You as I now do?
What of Those that steer Them, the Winds?
They as well seem to fall still at Your passing

But no! I shall lament no more!
For at the end of Day is Night
And Its emissary, Dusk, prepares Your celestial bed, Father
Where You shall return to slumber amongst Your kin

Sleep well, then, my Lord
And I shall welcome, with as much reverence as is Her due
Your Sister, my Mother: my Lady the Moon

M.M. — October MMX

The Ten Steps of The Ascending Stair

First, of all that You Speak, always when You Speak, You shall utter untruth. Lie shall be Your tongue. Slaver You shall Hypocrisy and Ostentation. From Your mouth Words marred by unwarranted Self-Worth shall be vomited forth.

Second, Your Body shall become as Nothing to You. Self-flagellation and Self-laceration with whips of Self-abasement shall be Your spiralling misdeeds. Pride shall no more be the Libations poured onto Your Flesh by Your Hand.

Third, muddle Your Name amongst the Cacophonous Ruined Litany of Man. The dissonant Clamouring shall now be Your Symphony. Lay down the Pen and Sword, They shall not sing Your Name in the Halls of the Earth: They are now deaf.

Fourth, You shall spit upon Honour and forsake Chivalry—these are the Relics of the Forgotten Dead. Cowardice and the Dogma of the Common shall be Your hallowed maxims henceforth.

Fifth, the Brightest of Day and Darkest of Night shall become insipid to You. You shall mock the Moon and usurp the Sun. The Earth shall become Your dominion; the throne You shall set there shall be Yours, whence You shall Despoil. Lord over all Earthly things You shall become, as it is Your Right.

Sixth, strike down and spurn from Your Side the Lauded Ones You heretofore esteemed, for the Nameless Many so command. In Their place shall reign the Many. Temples unto them You shall erect, wherein You shall offer Oblations and Speak to Them not with Silence.

Seventh, all Your Ideas shall be reduced to mere Hollow Pretensions, filled with cold Vacuity. They shall Stagger around as the Blind in the Sea of the Universe. Though fret not, for the Sea shall soon after be Drained and swept away—there is no need to Imbibe from It again.

Eighth, Fear! for Fear shall be Yours in entirety, and inextricable. Warm to It for from It shall You derive much succour. All Acts and Actions shall be swathed in and painted with Fear's Flimsy-Heart hue.

Ninth, You shall remove Your Diadem of Stars and cast it down before feet not Your own. Make well the fit of the Collar that shall be Yours to adorn, for You shall have it affixed forevermore. Offer it obsequiously, Sycophant, but not with Your Hands, as They shall be Your Instruments no longer.

Tenth, and Finally, You shall go upon the One who You Love most: You shall go upon Them and You shall precipitate Their Obliteration. All that You Would Do for Them You shall never do. Annihilate Your Will to Love—It is such a trifle now. All that They are to You, all that You Feel for Them, shall become as nought: You shall disrupt all of Your Energy You direct towards Them. You shall Give unto Them Nothing. You shall throttle Love.

M.M. — September-October MMX