Dark Knight
Amidst the Forest of Darkness,
I stand beside this bitter road,
which once was called by the name of Hope,
though none has ever showed,
In the deepening Night I hear,
the distant echo of dying screams,
along the path whose pebbles,
are the shards of Broken Dreams,
A chilly breath snakes down this trail,
over which the Melancholy Mists lie,
It seems to come from nowhere,
and lead to where all Ideals die.
Through the copse of skeleton trees
a cold light seeps across the dismal scene,
The Ominous Silence is suddenly cut,
by a piercing banshee keen,
Yet, no dread can touch my hollow heart,
who with Creatures of Shadow must abide,
After untold time in the Morbid Wood,
I am desolate and empty inside.
So long I have stood beside this road,
I've been waiting here for years,
And yet no help has come along,
so alone I shed my tears,
With somber spirit I remain,
bewildered in the Gloom,
For some fair Knight to ride up,
and save me from this doom,
A Prince to whisper "Come with me,"
and reach down a shining hand,
lifting me onto his noble steed,
to carry me off to some pleasant land.
So many have come by this way,
glowing with an ethereal light,
offering me salvation-
an end to my Endless Night.
Each time one came new hope was born,
a dream sprung from nightmare,
But each time I reached out my hand,
only to be greeted by air,
Each one was a vision that melted,
My numb heart watched them fade,
Time and again another would come,
in this spectral cavalcade.
Long I would stand in the darkness,
until my soul was ready to die,
But just when I had given up,
a new Knight would ride by,
And despite my Shroud of Doubt,
I would give this one a chance,
only to see him disappear,
leaving me lost in a dreary trance.
After so many tiresome years,
standing frozen in the dark,
their faces now blur together,
and their passing I hardly mark,
Yet these wraiths still haunt me,
and low hang the Clouds of Despair,
I've forgotten why I stand by Hope
for delusions I can no longer bear.
Now my heart is so heavy,
I am drained and have no more will,
I watch the phantoms passing by,
I can no longer tell what is real.
Behold! Another rides this way,
like so many ghosts before,
And after he has vanished,
there will come many more.
I lift my head at his approach,
and shed a wistful tear,
For something about him is different,
This one does not disappear.
Ah! Too late arrives my shining Prince
with promises of love and rescue,
In my darkness I have learned,
that there are none such as you.
I do not trust ephemeral visions,
for they may only deceive,
And in such impossible fantasies,
I no longer believe.
I know that these are mere figments,
that my weary mind had made,
For they beckon me to reach for them,
only to break my heart when they fade.
Ride on my sweet apparition,
for all that remains here is woe,
Follow the road that Faith took
when he left long ago.
Leave me to the Darkness,
for I am resigned to my Fate,
Whether you are real or not,
you have come too late.
Pass on my beautiful illusion,
I know now you are not true,
Swathed in shadows I await,
a darker Prince than you.
Across the road, beyond Hope,
he watches from the shadows,
quietly regarding me,
wrapped in his Cloak of Sorrows,
For a long while he has stared,
his eyes boring into me,
girt with the black Sword of Fate,
and veiled in Robes of Mystery.
Compared to my bright fantasies,
this dark figure is more real,
for though my dreams have passed away,
he remains here still.
Do you see? He approaches,
Silent, tall and grim,
The giant steed on which he rides,
is as black as him.
My Knight . . . no, My Night has come,
and forebodingly seems to loom,
His ashen face half-hidden,
by the grisly Hood of Doom,
He bends his cold gaze on me,
and reaches down a clammy hand,
Unspoken words-"Come with me."
-an offer I cannot withstand.
As I reach out towards him,
the truth I am finally shown,
He reveals his ghastly face,
and I realize I have always known.
The veil of illusion has been lifted,
And my eyes finally see,
Death is the only Prince,
who will ever stop for me.