This fever has weakened me and so in my desperation I drink heartily from the cup of this Nyquil potion. I shiver as icy fingers brush gently along the length of my vertebrae. So cold… so very cold…
I clutch my pillow to me tightly and draw comfort from its soft familiarity.
Like a petulant child, fists clenched, on my knees, I scream my rage and sorrow unto the void.
Whether by intention, design or blissful ignorance, it mocks and scorns me.
I am enraged by its further unyielding cruelty, knowing my cries shall go unanswered.
Once more I am engulfed in darkness and my very essence is fragmented and scattered unceremoniously on the chill winds of time and memory.
My Demons come for me and I am broken…
Sensing my weakness, they have conspired to usurp me. But which of them would be so bold as to assume that they could take my throne?
Paranoia? Self-loathing? Obcession? All likely suspects I’m sure.
Like foot-soldiers, they gather around me and unsheathe their swords. I raise my head, close my eyes and await the killing blow. Even in sickness, I will not show weakness to them, even if it should cost me my life. I am somewhat relieved as I hear their swords clatter to the stone floor. I risk a peek to assure myself that they are not toying with me and see them all drop to their knees and kneel before me.
‘My Liege, I beseech thee. Lead thine army for the glory of Avalon.’
‘Avalon?’
‘Yes, Majesty. A great Darkness befalls us, that is not of our making’.
‘Darkness?’
‘Majesty? Art thou bedevilled? Thy words speak confusion, art thy brain addled?’
‘No, I have just awokened… up?’
A look of shock and horror pass over his features and he quickly gets to his feet.
‘Thou art awake? Then all is lost, Avalon will fall’.
‘Wait, it can’t be as bad as all that, surely?’
He grips my shoulders and lifts me bodily to my feet, hands shaking in their gauntlets.
‘Art thou an imbecile? Doth thou not understand the importance and weight of these events?’
‘No I don’t. Why don’t you explain them to me?’ He stares me down, and I stand firm. Testosterone shimmers off us in waves as we each fight for dominance in our rival’s eyes. Eventually, he lets me go, sighs and begins his story
‘It hath been foretold in prophecy. That one day, the king would wak’eth. And on that day, when his majesty’s other worldly soul walks in Avalon, a great darkness would be released and Avalon will fall.’
‘Are there no other armies that will help us fight?’
‘The spirit folk lack substance and can only observe, although, they do advise wise counsel. The fairy folk art wielding great magics and art prepared to wage cover fire for the advanced guard. The elves will mount an air assault on dragon’s wings.’
‘Hang on, you’re telling me you have dragons here?’
‘Do they not sail with glorious majesty through the skies of thy world?’
‘What? They breathe fire and everything? How cool is that?’
‘I understand not, thy words? I fear thee be fair speaking in tongues were it not for the glimpses of familiarity within. But forgive me, I digress. Surely ye now comprehend that which was lost, and the urgency of our plight?’
‘Yes, I do. Is there no more to the prophecy?’
‘More?’
‘Yeah, like. Oh I don’t know, um… the darkness can be defeated by… a swift knee to the happy sack… a clip round the ear and told to bugger off home’.
He took a concealed dagger from within his armour, gripped me, slammed me into a wall and pressed the point into that fleshy fold where your neck meets your chin. I gulped, as he glared at me with barely suppressed fury, his face mere inches from mine.
‘Doth thou mock me? I should kill thee where thee stand. I hath bore mine soul to thee, and ye remark with flippancy and disrespect. Thou hast all the guile and cunning of a squashed apricot’
I answered, carefully choosing my next words.
‘I apologise most indubitably, I was being facetious and there was no need for it. It won’t happen again.’
‘Then take care when ye speak, for there are those who would’st not be so forgiving as I.’
He let me go and put away his dagger. The next moment it was like my transgression had never happened.
‘We must bare arms and wage battle.’ He picked up his sword and held it above his head, the rest of this demon army got up from their still kneeling position, and held their swords aloft also.
‘FORE THE GLORY OF AVALON!’ he shouted.
‘FORE THE GLORY OF AVALON!’ they replied.
‘WAIT!’ I called. They looked back at me puzzled.
‘Wait? Time is of the essence and already much is lost. We must away!’
‘What do you know of the darkness? Can it be killed? Is it even corporeal?’
‘What nonsense doth thou speak now? Corporeal?’
‘Are there no wise men, mystics or soothsayers that we can call upon, someone with insight, perhaps?’
‘There is a man, a very ancient and powerful sorcerer. It has been said that he was there at the very birth of Avalon. His real name hath been lost to the ages, but he is called by many names. The guardian, the ancient one, the founder…’
‘Okay, then shouldn’t we seek him out. Surely, he would make a great ally.’
‘But he is ancient and we hold many magics.’
‘Okay, its your call. But with names like ‘the guardian’ and ‘the founder’ I’m surprised no one has sought him out already.’
‘Hmm… Thy words hold merit, my friend. But alas, no one has ever sought him out, never thee mind gazed upon him in flesh.’
‘But if he’s as powerful a sorcerer as you say, maybe, just maybe, we could call him out and he’ll hear’
Suddenly we hear a wizened chuckling from the corner of the room. All eyes turn and the demons draw their swords. With a wave of his ancient hand, time stops. The demons hold their swords like a still photo or painting by Giger or Escher. The old sorcerer strides toward me.
‘Finally, someone with a little sense…’
‘How?’
‘Never thee mind about that now, there is much I must tell ye. Now listen carefully:
‘Now ye lay thee down to sleep,
Yon king and thee shall surely weep.
Quell thy darkness from this land,
Upon the pyre, hand in hand.
If ye find thy world lives on,
Live for dreams of Avalon.’’
‘What the hell does that mean?’
‘Remember. Now take'th this goblet from me, walk into thy darkness and drink heartily. It is as simple as that.’
‘But its empty.’
‘Think acrostically, my friend. When thy time is nigh, ye shalt know what thou must do.’
‘But what caused all this? What is the Darkness?
‘In essence my friend, it is thee. It is contained within thee. It is the darker thoughts and dreams of men that are not acted upon. I take it that in thy realm ye are something of a bard, scribe or artist. Would'st I be correct in mine assumption?’
‘Yes, not a very successful one I grant you.’
‘In the other realm, the king must walk in obscurity, he may draw upon the darkness in his works, but he may never draw attention upon himself. I’m sorry if this pains thee, but it is how it must be.’
‘Okay… so why am I here?’
‘Well basically, Avalon is sustained by the dreams of mortal men in the other realm, thy realm in fact. The king, thy counterpart took upon the burden of keeping the realms separate by remaining in perpetual slumber, that his mind may bridge the gap between reality and fantasy. But that said, he shalt remain a presence in each to maintain his own dream-state. All creatures of myth and legend that once existed in thy world came here to escape intolerance and extinction at the hands of a new and aggressive species.’
‘Man?’
‘Yes, ironic really isn’t it that man shalt forever sustain that which he would slaughter without thought.’ He chuckles.
‘So what would happen to my world… realm if Avalon falls?’
‘Could'st thou truly picture a world where humanity cannot dream? No inspiration, no art, no writing, no music. And what would become of humanity without its dreams and passions?’
‘They would die of boredom’
‘Exactly. So now me thinks ye understand the importance of thy success.’
‘Yes, thank you for that, no pressure there then.’
‘Thy flippancy does not become thee.’
‘Yes, I’ve been hearing that a lot lately, stress reaction really.’
‘Now, ye must act swiftly. I shalt hold back time and send thee to the threshold of thy darkness. Art thou ready?’
‘As ready as I’ll ever be’
‘Then go, my friend, good luck and Godspeed to thee’ he said with a wave of his hand.
The whole room disappeared from view and I was temporarily disorientated as I found myself stood before what looked like a huge black hole that destructively and violently consumed everything in its path. I’m suddenly pulled off my feet and forced headlong into the Darkness… My Darkness.
My counterpart king awaits me within and beckons me to him through the maelstrom. Like magnets we are drawn to each other. I hold the goblet aloft, but it is still empty.
‘What is this? Did'st thee seek out ‘the Ancient’?’
‘Yes, he gave me this and said I would know what to do when the time comes’
‘Well?’
‘I don’t know!’
‘Art thou a half wit? What else did he say’eth to thee?’
‘Hang on, there was a rhyme:
Now ye lay thee down to sleep,
Yon king and thee shall surely weep.
Quell thy darkness from this land,
Upon the pyre, hand in hand.
If ye find thy world lives on,
Live for dreams of Avalon.’
‘What else did he say?’
‘I’m thinking… think acrostically. That was it ‘think acrostically’
‘Then do so quickly’
‘But what does it mean?’
‘Thou truly art an imbecile, aren’t thee? Acrostic poetry, thou take’st the first letter of each line to form a word’
‘Well now you’ve explained it… I still don’t see how it helps’
‘Try fool, before it become’th too late’
‘N… Y… Q… U… I… L… Nyquil?’
‘Nyquil? Is this some sorcery, magic or potion from whence ye came?’
‘I guess it is.’
‘Behold, for thy cup runn’eth over.’
And it did, a huge dose of Nyquil filled the goblet.
‘Kings before beggars my lord’ I said and offered it to him. He took it and drank heartily of the thick, green, pungent liquid, before passing it back to me. I drank deeply, and my head began to spin.
I awoke, having sweated through the bed sheets, still feeling like crap. Now, I’ve either just saved the world, two worlds in fact or I’m still delirious from flu and Nyquil. I know which is the most likely, but I also know which I’d prefer to believe.
Sweet dreams my friends………
Author notes
If this is too long please let me know & I'll withdraw it from contest. I chose to write about Avalon because the legend has always facinated me. I've read one or two books about it & in some of the mental health circles I've been in, various people have told me they have dreams of Avalon, been to Avalon or are conected to Avalon. Spooky huh?
So one day, while down with flu, I glugged back much Niquil & wrote this piece. Hope you like it!
In a list
A contest entry
- Mythology, (With a Twist!) Contest and Creative Writing Workshop by kareneisenlord.
900 points, ended March 16, 2008, 39 entries
Honorable mention
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest - AVALON by maa.
1443 points, ended August 10, 2008, 15 entries
Honorable mention
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest - Sci Fi/Fantasy Extravaganza II by Dark Otter.
700 points, ended December 5, 2008, 9 entries
Silver trophy winner
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest - prose ONLY. by samantha jean.
750 points, ended April 28, 12 entries
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest - Spoof Prose... with exalted metaphors... weird and funny! by PinkPony.
700 points, ended May 6, 10 entries
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest - Story time by hyper thing.
400 points, ended June 27, 11 entries
Gold trophy winner
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest - GIVE ME YOUR BEST PROSE by HereComesTheSun.
900 points, ended September 2, 32 entries
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest
Comments
1 - 13 of 13
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a brilliant dark prose that hits the core
my only holdback about the piece is that its centered and its prose (just a pet peeve)
thanks for entering -
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No probs, I've just aligned to the left...
Tis a bad habit of mine to centre stuff...
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Oh, this is truly amazing! WOW... you really did yourself proud here and it's to your credit you wrote it while ill.
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Once again I am speechless
vivid imagery
Ones own darkness inner thoughts dream state
becomes a world all it's own
how uttlerly brillant
Thanks for the share
Aleshia *standing novation*
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So creative. You stand out from everyone else in the contest. Amazing write.
Good luck in my contest, and thank you for entering. -
Congrats on the Attire!
Wow, love this hun! The flippant attitude kinda reminds me of the character simon the sorcerer Very well written, had me engrossed all the way through. Superbly done bro! Congrats on the shinys, but it should be wearing a gold! 
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What a fun write!
This was most enjoyable to read. The plot was great, and i love the whole "twist" at the end. It made me laugh out loud. As did the lines "Art thou a half wit?" and "Thy flippancy does not become thee."
What a wonderful story you have penned here! So easy and enjoyable to read!
Great job!
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As soon as I saw this, I said winner!
An incredible fantasy write that might be even beyond my reach. Your style draws me in and leaves me puzzled. What is it about your writing that I like so much? I'll just tip my hat to you and say congrats on the gold. I look forward to seeing more of your work in the future!
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holy cow of rajasthan ...
you definitely have penned a fascinating story here ...
you hold the attention of your reader throughout the whole piece, like a real storyteller should ... you have true talent indeed ...
whilst the beginning is truly touching and heartwrenching, I feel that the "demons" that came into light, have quickly transformed into light during their exposure to it ...
I must admit that I had never expected to see this adventure end this way, I broke out laughing ! I always love it when poets have the gift to share wisdom in a humorous manner, somehow the medicine of the lesson taught goes down the throat much easier than through philosophical concepts presented in a boring way ...
for some reasons, the lines that intrigued me most were the following : "What is the Darkness?
‘In essence my friend, it is thee. It is contained within thee. It is the darker thoughts and dreams of men that are not acted upon."
this definitely hits home ...
you did well to present this masterful story-poem in my contest !
thank you so much,
maa
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I asked all of you for mythology with a twist, and you really socked it to me! I was very impressed by all of your entries, and many of you came up with some really unique and creative material with a different way of applying and perceiving mythology. It was enjoyable reading and I learned a lot from reading all of your fabulous writes. Because there was such an abundance of excellent entries in this contest, it was difficult to decide which ones would be the final winners. I apologize for taking so long to judge. Ultimately, I went with the material that impressed me and stuck with me the most. What had the greatest influence, insight, oversight, ambience and applied the myth/story in a thought-provoking and interesting way. The entries that were still playing through my mind and echoing with fond recollection, long after first reading them, are the ones that I finally decided upon as the winners. Objectivity in judging this contest was not my goal, but how each one of you subjectively influenced and moved me through your write. I re-read all of your writes again before my final judgment and relished it thoroughly. You are all gifted with incredible minds and talent. I wished that I could give more than one trophy in each category because certainly there was more than one that deserved it. All of you deserved an honorable mention, at the very least, and I wished I could do this and more. After the winners, the list is not in order of my favorites but most are in the chronological order as they were entered into the contest. I was glad to comment personally on each one of you. “Heading Towards Hope” - won the gold for me, because it took an uncommon theme in western mythology, deriving the story from eastern mythology, namely Hinduism. The interpretation of this, my favorite Hindu Deity, Ganesh, blew me away, and provided a step forward in my consciousness. I was awed by the profoundness, beauty and humility of this write. While many of your stories moved me deeply, this one actually shifted my consciousness. It contained both meaningful, inspirational and unique applications, written in a purity and sweetness of the heart and soul that is reflected in the words of the poet who wrote it. Gifts of the Faery, Part II I awarded Gifts of the Faery, Part II because it reached deep into my sense of profound honor and respect for Nature and all of Creation. Not only did it express stunning wisdom, but it also reflected an eloquent poetic style of it’s own. It is filled with ancient knowledge and powers that are for the Light and bringing humanity to a higher level of hope for the ultimate transformation of humankind and our Earth Mother! Lemuria's Sacred Contract - Video Slam Not only is this a beautifully written poem but it struck a chord that resonates far within the innermost essence of my being for I have always felt a special connection to Lemuria and long to be reunited with her. This is my hope for all of humanity, for “Lemuria” or the lost continent of Mu, (the motherland), is analogous with Paradise of earth. She was the original motherland of Atlantis and Egypt. They were her colonies. Lemuria sank beneath the ocean in the world‘s last great worldwide cataclysm. Mu existed in the Pacific ocean, and the Pacific islands, Easter Island and the Hawaiian Islands, are all remnants of her. This was over 20,000 years ago. Many believe that she will rise again, at least in the collective heart and soul of all humanity. This poem described my feelings in a way that I could not do much better myself - a twin reflection of my sentiments and my hope for us all of us! The Honorable mentions - I will talk about a few of them. Since I commented on all of your entries, you already know how I reacted to your work, but here are a few of the HM’s that I want to give further “honorable mention to“. I wish that I could do so for all of them, but these stood out the most in my mind. “Kalpa ” won an honorable mention because it reflected an overview of the Cosmos on a grand and astronomical scale. Not only was it eloquently written, but it impressed me with the deeper wisdom and perspective that was reflected therein, by giving one of the most developed and accurate views of the creation of the universe(s) and the dissolution that occurs over and over. It is the Hindu creation myth, that more and more, fits into the most advanced theories of physics and astronomy, (and the Vedic people came to this conclusion thousands of years ago, through spiritual practices!) Orphee's Heartstrings - expressed the pain and suffering of Orpheus so well. wow how in the world did i come up with this??? Very clever imagery and it was refreshingly spontaneous. Sacrifice with Creation - The ancient myth of a god sacrificing himself for the benefit of humanity carried forward to humanity helping humanity! Gasping - Had beautiful imagery and it reflected the tragic fate of both Narcissus and Echo in such a haunting way Lost Messiah - struck a chord with me, because it bravely stated how the most important messages of Jesus have been lost, to love ourselves and one another. I think Jesus is quoted to have said, “…love your neighbor as yourself,” among many other references to love. Another one is, “…love the Lord your God with all your heart…” Lucifer’s Sword - was another really courageous write in that it gave the perspective of the necessity of evil and the role of opposites. Untitled - was fresh and different. I was hoping that someone would write something based on Chinese legend and mythology. It is beautiful, rich, varied and ancient. This was a good job at tackling this creation myth. Poisoned Prophesies - impressed me because it expressed the dilemma of a seer. ..With a flying centaur... An exciting and enchanting poem about a mythological creature with wings taking one everywhere and anywhere in the Universe. The Reflection Looks Back - Was a wonderful interpretation of the Narcissus Myth. Star Garden - Thought-provoking with a lovely play on words. Nyquil Dreams - Because who is to say what is the true reality? "Plus DOCS changent..." - Another great play and twist on the age-old Cinderella story, told from the view point of the Fairy God Mother. Very clever and fun! Rick Rubens, Prometheus - I liked this one because it was clever and portrays modern day fire-givers. I could go on and on - and I wish that I could recap all of the entries which I have read over and relished. You were all great and like I said, you all deserved a trophy; every one of you! Thank you for putting all of your creative minds here in the contest for me to savor. All of you is exquisitely and uniquely talented. Keep writing and thinking because not only are you people good poets, many of you are amazing philosophers as well. That means, that you are seekers of the truth. That is what a philosopher does. Blessings!
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I was suspicious of a dream induced by "Nyquil" by the name of your entry. The beginning made me weep, because I often feel like what you describe in the beginning of your write. It is almost a daily struggle with me due to depression and fibromyalgia. It is better lately.
The humor in your write is enjoyable as well. I enjoyed the two-fold dichotomy of your piece; serious yet light-hearted. The acrostic on nyquil is both cute and hauntingly beautiful. Many of us remember Avalon, and wish for Her return, and to be once again within her fold. She probably still exists in another dimension, and who knows - like you said- which is the true reality?
Thank you for entering this intriguing piece in the contest. It is imaginative and fun! Best of luck to you.
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Totally awesome.You are so creative and intensly descriptive...
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I'm so glad you posted this..
How enthralling..Only you could produce
something so amazing, something so imaginative,
and greatly creative, being down with the flu.
Love it, love it!! love it!!
~Pastel
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