Churls

A fantasy piece. I was thinking of Robert E. Howard and the Bran Mak Morn stories while writing this.

The claxon clang of shattered steel
Splits the air with waves of sound,
And stills the blaring din of battle
In rings of silence widening 'round.

King before churls kneels bowed and beaten
In a ring of hostile swords.
Blade raised aloft the churl is halted
By upraised face and kingly words.

How came this pass? Why must I die?
What evil have I done?
Awaiting a litany of evil deeds,
All listen, but none come.

Silence reigns and warriors wait
For words replete with evil acts,
Silence greets them, one and all
None come

Serfs revolt 'gainst bondage alone
No evil need be done
For spirit trammeled cannot live
And no slave can know love.

No king's so mighty as to rule the soul
or bind the spirits of those who serve
for mind shall triumph over all
even if it must make a mighty arm to serve.

A slashing stroke and a kingdom falls
churls throw an empire to it's knees
utopia's lost, barbaria's found
but every man is free.
 

Reviews

[Helena Parris]

Your first line really yanked me in. "The claxon clang of shattered steel..." It sounds like a battle, and I loved the medieval imagery. The rhythm pulls you along. There's a certain inevitability about where it's going "...utopia's lost, barbaria's found, but every man is free."

An all around great read!

[Poeticpiers]

if only this were true.We are still bound by obligations and forced into servitude to meet our daily needs/
Only the mind is free to imagine Utopia
I enjoyed this offering very much indeed sir