“I will be King soon.” thought the Prince of Happiness. “It is time I journey beyond my realm"…
After many travels, the prince enjoyed much fanfare, and had great success in creating new friendships great and small. He rode eagerly toward the next mountain range, wondering what lands and people lay beyond.
A tangled forest loomed ahead that made the prince and his noble steed uneasy. It swayed its large trees ponderously in gusts of wild wind. The prince hesitantly coaxed his steed forward and they entered...
The prince possessed the skills to make anyone in the world happy. But here, peering past the gnarled trunks into the darkness beyond, there appeared to be something other-worldly just beyond every next menacing branch.
Deeper and deeper into the forest the prince rode. He felt ever more threatened by the thorned thickets and sharp, unfriendly brambles, and he began to sense many things here- things wrong, things dark, things forboding. Embers of fear and uncertainty began to smolder in his heart. The prince rode on, the hooves of his steed crunching among the dead leaves, echoing their passage...
The prince soon noticed his weariness. He halted in a glade through which ran a small, bubbling brook. As his large steed drank, an eerie presence stood behind him. His heart froze. The steed bucked and bolted. “A would-be king must face this danger,” he scolded himself, and turned to confront the terrifying spirit…
She was so beautiful, like an apparition beyond this world. He noticed that she was offended at the way he was staring at her. He quickly gained control of himself, but it was too late, the damage was done. “What have we here, but yet another base and arrogant traveler who has lost his way.” Her voice was like a siren singing, though with a cutting edge, and it was laden with a deep melancholic undertone. The prince's nature could not be suppressed, and it rose to challenge...
She sensed the challenge building within the prince, a challenge she accepted. "If it is a battle this arrogant prince wants, it is a battle he is going to get."
The angel approached the prince and raised her arms. The trees swirled, the air mystified, and the world darkened. The prince found himself a spirit in a stark realm, with the melancholy angel standing before him. Between, a small sacrificial alter rose out of the craggy ground with an aura of final judgement. The prince knew his challenge had been taken- taken by a melancholy angel. It would be the challenge of his lifetime...
The angel began,
“Upon the dawn I awoke
to find myself alone;
so alone, once again.”
and the prince replied,
“You are beautiful beyond beautiful, oh Angel,
but I also see pain within your heart,
and because of that,
a lonely emptiness.
Yet, what man would not want to relieve your pain
and fill your emptiness?”
The angel countered impatiently,
“You speak of men, earthly prince, like a naïve child, a child who does not know them. It is not my heart they desire, nor my emptiness they wish to fill...”
The prince argued,
“Angel, you must learn to sift through the weeds to find the one blade of nourishing wheat. Happiness was not created to go unchallenged.”
The angel started. She had never encountered a strong adversary, and was taken by surprise. She began to imagine her melancholy drifting away in a life with this prince, but caught herself. She had been fooled before, and her heart had paid a heavy price.
“Oh, you are a weaver of sweet and smooth words, aren't you, Master Prince,” the angel replied sternly. She remained wary, and maintained her guard… for she had fallen for weavers of deception before, with heartache the only reward for her foolishness...
the angel continued, more deeply now,
“Nightmares come to my chamber and dance
stirring the liquid floors of my memories.
Each night they steal my happiness away.
As I curl in the corner,
they carve words of melancholy into my soul.
I spin and reel as they empty my heart once again.”
The prince had to ponder hard, for he found in her a melancholy deeper and darker than any he had ever encountered before. The prince felt beads of strain trickling down his temple. He realized he could lose this contest. He did not want to imagine what a melancholy angel would reduce an earthly prince to if he failed...
“Angel, graced you are with visual beauty,
but it leads the hearts of others astray.
Do not blame your nightmares for stealing your happiness,
they represent the shallowness of desires,
and cannot see the damage they do.
If you use the beauty of your songs within, you can defeat them.”
The angel looked perplexed. She could not see how such dark nightmares could be defeated, and what are these 'songs within'? She sensed an urge to discover, for though she was a melancholy angel, it was not by her choice...
The angel continued, beginning to pour out her soul to the prince,
“The nightmares force me to dance,
my feet burn brightly across the ebony bones of my dreams,
lighting up the night with a macabre glow.
I try to hide…”
The prince replied,
“To be controlled by others is a curse,
but you have been given wings to fly
and a new sunrise is never that far away…”
“Wings!” The angel scornfully laughed.
“My wings are crippled,
the ivory rose of life has wilted within me.
The inhabitants of darkness who control my soul
have chained me to the shades of the starless night.”
The prince sensed he was losing her, and yet in part, winning. He summoned all of his courage and strength,
“Crippled wings often need a healer,
for if left to set on their own, they will mend,
but they will mend twisted and misshapen.
Angel, I see your wings are not beyond repair.
Your wings need the touch of loving hands…”
The angel recoiled at this. The hands of the men in her lifetime were not loving. She was flirting with exasperation now, and ready to slay the prince; yet she felt a faint awareness that this mortal prince could in fact own such hands. "Could it be?" The prince saw her waver, and pressed the attack…
“Angel, melancholy is like a potion
that one becomes dependent on, that one gets used to,
that one comes to need
as a defense against a cruel world.
There are those who have overcome this,
but not without finding love.”
"Love!” As the thought flooded her mind, her voice betrayed the fear and longing that still clung to that word...
~*~
The contest sent waves of conflict throughout the stark land. A large audience of spirits gathered to witness the event, spirits both dark and light. The angel softened, for she had not seen the spirits of light for so long. The prince noticed, but the angel was fast, and mustered new energies to do battle with the earthly prince…
The angel continued, but with a hint of pleading in her tone now,
“No one can see the pain I carry within
a pain that is hidden in the forest.
I lean against the trees
and count the falling stars.
I see that they do not carry my wish.”
The prince saw an opening for a masterful blow…
“You have admitted you have a 'wish', angel! Yet you do not carry it with you. Why? You seem to have lost it. Here, take it, for I hold it here.” With that, the prince reached into his pouch and pulled out a large, shining orb. He pressed on with solemn eyes, through which his heart and soul were now revealed to her. He had placed everything within him into this final gambit…
“To have a wish, Angel,
truly means there is hope.
Your wish could be standing right here next to you,
and you would not know it,
being swallowed in your melancholy.
Please, take this orb,
for it holds the secret to the fulfillment of your wish.”
This was an unexpected move by the prince. The angel could not find a way to refuse the offer. She reached for the orb and their hands met…
She pulled away quickly, instinctively, and immediately realized it was a trick. It was too late. She found herself with a strong desire to relive the moment, to have her hands touch his again, for in such moments two may peer into the deepest recesses of each other's needs. She found his hands caring, full of love, full of life. She missed them dearly.
In spite of her new desire, she could not find a way to give in to it and not concede defeat. "Only failure will come of it," she justified, and with that, she slowly lapsed back into her melancholy...
“Darkness is encrypted upon my soul,
bitter secrets course through my veins,
each dawn I awake alone,
to once again see my shattered reflection
in the rays of the morning sun, and I weep,
for my destiny is in its setting.”
As she gazed within, once again lost in her own dark thoughts, the prince stealthly moved forward and gently took her hands. At that moment, the spirits of light in the audience rushed back into her soul. The Nightmares were blown away with the dark clouds, and peace shone again on her mind. The fogs of gray receded, and the stark land was awash in a fresh breeze. Her chief demon, Solitude, was transformed from a specter of death to a white swan.
The angel knew the prince had achieved victory. He had rescued her from the agony of her morbid thoughts, and he had rekindled the melodies of long-forgotten lullabies...
a companion piece to
Melancholy of the Mind by Scarlet Whisper
Author notes
Written June 9th, 2006
In a list
- Psychological- Some (Mostly Oldies) • next in list
- † Poems from my AP daddy • next in list
- * Scarlet Ambrosia • next in list
- Carefully Crafted- Some • next in list
- Gothic Romance • next in list
- Vampires, Werewolves, Other Dark Beings • next in list
A contest entry
- ~Dark Thoughts~ by Frozentearz.
300 points, ended June 14, 2006, 15 entries
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest
What did you think
Comments
1 - 38 of 38
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I have but one word for this peice.... OUTSTANDING!
I was totally captivated by this peice and it's one I won't soon forget! Thanks for sharing this! Best wishes... no luck needed... this speaks volumes for your talent!
Frog -
glad you stuck it out until the end, Bel... and enjoyed my little dark fantasy piece! Credit to my AP daughter, too, from whom I derived the melancholic poetic passages from!
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My dear Wayne once again your talents have surged forth to create a tale that grips the reader in the begining and refuses to relaese them until they have completed their read of this piece in it's entirity. You have a true knack for telling a tale and keeping your readers interested. Far too often I find myself losing interest in stories mid way through, though that has never been the case with yours. Bravo!
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I have not the time to finish this piece right now, but I shall bookmark it and promise that you will recieve a cmment upon it when I get the time.
May your shadow never waver,
DF -
Well ,you little weaver of metaphoric fairy tales you! This was a stroke of genius of story telling. Nice work Mr.Poet.~~Suseann
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YOu have an amazing gift to tell story through poetry form
a journey with words the reader does not soon forget.
Thank you for sharing your talent. I know I have already answered this but I am revisiting.
Love and Light
FrozenTearz
Edited on Jun 11, 11:26 because ''. -
This piece was so much fun to read. I'm very happy that the prince won! Hope there will be a companion to this one also.
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Well, my whispering scarlet AP daughter, another one to add to our growing collection!
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Thanks, Asmodeus (nice ancient name, on another site I'm 'rageofachilles'!) I checked out your author page, and your background is pretty cool! Poem? Well, not entirely, but storywrite really sucks right now, so I posted it here!
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excellent
What an awesome work!This is something aweinspiring.I simply loved this.well,mere "love" is not enough to express how inspired i am,but words fail me!Thanks for sharing such a masterpiece with us!
ranjani
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well, Mr. capricornpoet, I had to go refresh myself on 'allegory'... so for that an applause! I see your verdict contained that ultimate question... and you answered it!
lol
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AMAZING GRIPPING WONDERFUL
Oh My! What a captivating, interesting, and truly wonderful entry for this contest. I was completely held by this wonderful story/verse. Oh you need NO luck here dear writer, no luck at all. Simply Wonderful. I LOVED this. ~Pam
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Is love possible
interesting allegorical tale, melancholy and darkness, an illness of today,love seems unatanattainable; quite the metaphoric battle; impersonification of a prince and an angel.
Altruism of love conquering..soothing, dreamy..
Loved it , refreshing. -
This reads like a tale that one seldom runs across anymore. It kept me glued to the page from beginning to end
I also stoppedby your author-page again.....I found that gets my adrenaline going more than a cup of coffee Alll that *psychedelity" <-----a reenie word does something for the brain and I can feel it bounce from left to right and vice/versa
. Hey , am i a sister yet , or is it as usual that the red tape is miles long. I can send a resume ( oops , maybe I better not) Have a great Sunday, and this is a treasure of a write,
xoxo
reenie
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Hey. LOVE the background. As for the poem, it's ver different from anything I'm used to seeing. At first, I wasn't even sure if I could call it a poem. But then I realized how much emotion was put into and how much it could mean if you just sat there and thought about it. It's truley inspirational and I love it. Thanks for sharing it with us.
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Dad, that was amazing!
ohh... Ilove reading this one
very well done
Di
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That was so beautiful. I was worried that the angel would not find her wings for what is an angel without wings? To give on hope so dejectedly. What pain she must feel. With hope comes trust and it is hard to have hope when you can't trust. The angel has lost all trust but for her wish which means there is still hope left. The prince found her hope and set her free. Bravo!
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Im another one who loved it. You are a talented poet and have a unique way with words
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Oh wow! i am left with my hair standing on end and my heart a flutter. This is such a beautiful story with the most beautiful touch of poetry! I love it
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cool
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thanks, Dark Sanctuary, it's not quite the anime you and my daughter love, and I didn't put the bear in the big blue house in it, but I'm glad you liked this one anyway!
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that was really great. i loved when they challeneged eachother. very very good!
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awesome write.
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Great
I was a teacher and I'd definitely say this story was great for a book for teens to adults.It was enjoyed by me as others...Some artist could do wonderful illustrations for this Grimms -type fairy tale. -
this wasa great write...the two of you should publish it as a short story...it truly was that good...peace and harmony...shzoosy
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Brilliant
Wow! This is the most amazing writing I have ever read on this site. This is brilliant. Wonderful beyond words. I hope you are a published author, because you certainly should be. This deserves to be read by everyone. You should win the contest for this work. Thank you so much for sharing it. Jeannie D Hunter
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Excellent
That was a excellent poem there. I enjoyed it alot. I had to read it all from start to finish because of the opening lines. they said come on read me. So i did. And i'm happy i did. I found it a wonderful read.
It had a very pleasant Flow of words. I liked very much.
Thank you for writing a great poem. -
brilliant masterpiece
This one of the most enchanting piece of poetic art, I've read in a while. You remind me of one of the poets from the past. Just beautifully written. Full of great imagination, that took me on an amazing trip, your talent is explosive.....write ON!...ennovy
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wow. wow. just.. wow. that was amazingly well written. i love how its a story and then theres poetry/song within. both are extremely well done. i also really love the idea of losing the battle but winning yourself.. beautiful.
great job, again. !!!!
<3 Morgan -
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tremendous!
this is a beautiful and powerful write, it is very expressive and emotional, well done on creating such an imaginative and wonderful piece! god bless X -
Exquisite
This is a beautiful and uplifting work of art, truly! A few suggests (just my opinion
) ~ she had taken offense ~ victorious angel reduce ~ bared to her his heart ~ had rewritten the melodies (perhaps) Just a few hiccups, LOL. Thank you for sharing a fantasy filled wonder that is filled with so much truth. I will bookmark this and read the companion peace at my leisure...Deb
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victory in defeat, I did not see that concept, very insightful, linx!
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loved it.
Wow I'm just blow away. This was great it shows power of words. They battle only with thoughts and words but someting more i liked. It allows us to see the victory in defeat. Just great. This is a peek into darkness and light. -
Beautifully Written! truly captivating!
~Alea
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This is such a beautiful story, Thanks for sharing it with us. Good luck in the contest! Much love to you and yours,
Nicole
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Should be included in a college English textbook for the class to read and analyze and write an essay on and discuss and truly enjoy! You sound like an old master, here! What a fine poem!
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This was a great tale and journey through
words thanks for sharing.
Love and Light
Tearz
Adding your comment:
1 - 38 of 38
20 old applause
